Information on U.S. Army helicopter OH-6A tail number 67-16433
The Army purchased this helicopter 1068
Total flight hours at this point: 00000448
Date: 03/30/1971
Incident number: 710330101ACD Accident case number: 710330101 Total loss or fatality Accident
Unit: A/377 ARTY 101 ABN
The station for this helicopter was Camp Eagle in
Number killed in accident = 1 . . Injured = 2 . . Passengers = 1
costing 154221
Source(s) from which the incident was created or updated: Army Aviation Safety Center database.
Crew Members:
P W1 RJ HALL
CE E5 JK FRANKLIN
OB MAJ NIDEVER DAVID FRANK KIA
Accident Summary:
DESCRIPTION OF ACCIDENT\\ THE PILOT WAS REQUESTED TO TRANSPORT A PASSENGER FROM FSB VANDERGRIFT TO FSB SARGE BY ANOTHER PILOT FROM ^BTRY A, 377TH ARTY^, WHO HAD EXPERIENCED A BLADE STRIKE AND COULD NOT COMPLETE THE MISSION. ^WO HALL^ AGREED, REFUELED HIS AIRCRAFT AT FSB VANDERGRIFT, PICKED UP THE PASSENGER, ^MAJOR NIDEVER^, AND DEPARTED FOR FSB SARGE. THE FLIGHT FROM VANDERGRIFT TO SARGE REQUIRED 10 MINUTES AND WAS UNEVENTFUL. AT SOME POINT IN THE FLIGHT, ^MAJ NEDEVER^ NOTIFIED THE FIRE DIRECTION CENTER AT FSB SARGE THAT THE HELICOPTER WAS INBOUND TO THAT LOCATION.. ON FINAL APPROACH, ^WO HALL^ REQUESTED ^MAJ NIDEVER^ TO HAVE SOMEONE POP SMOKE ON THE PAD, WHICH THE MAJOR RELAYED TO THE GROUND. THE PILOT CONTINUED THE APPROACH ON A GENERAL 360 DEGREES HEADING, NOTED THAT THE APPROACH WAS TOO HIGH, AND EXECUTED A GO-AROUND. THE SECOND APPROACH WAS INITIATED AT THE SAME TIME A SMOKE GRENADE WAS BEING BROUGHT TO THE HELIPAD. THE APPROACH AIRSPEED APPEARED TO EXCESSIVE AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS OVER THE PAD BEFORE THE SMOKE HAD BEEN POPPED. THE PILOT ATTEMPTED A FLARE TO BRING THE AIRCRAFT TO A HOVER AND THE AIRCRAFT BEGAN ROTATING TO THE RIGHT. THE AIRCRAFT CONTINUED ROTATING TO THE RIGHT, EXECUTING TWO RAPID 360 DEGREES TURNS BEFORE THE PILOT REACTED BY ROLLING OFF THE THROTTLE. THIS REDUCED THE RATE OF ROTATION TO THE RIGHT, BUT THE AIRCRAFT DRIFTED OFF THE HELIPAD ALONG THE ORIGINAL 360 DEGREES APPROACH HEADING. CONTINUING IN A SLOW RIGHT HAND SPIN AND GRADUALLY LOSING ALTITUDE UNTIL IMPACTING THE SIDE OF THE HILL ON A HEADING OF 130DEGREES, AT A POINT 22 METERS NORTH OF THE HELIPAD. UPON IMPACT THE RIGHT SKID SEPARATED FROM THE AIRCRAFT, ALONG WITH 3 OF THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES AND ALL BUT 13 INCHES OF THE 4TH BLADE. THE AIRCRAFT ROLLED TO THE LEFT ONCE AND CAME TO REST INVERTED, WITH THE MAIN ROTOR HEAD OVER A TRENCH. THE ENGINE WAS STILL RUNNING AT THIS TIME. THE CREWCHIEF AND PASSENGER EXITED THE AIRCRAFT. THE PASSENGER, ^MAJOR NIDEVER^, RETURNED TO THE AIRCRAFT TO ASSIST THE PILOT. THE AIRCRAFT SHIFTED AND ^MAJOR NIDEVER^ BECAME TRAPPED UNDER THE AIRCRAFT. THE ROTOR HEAD, WHICH WAS STILL ROTATING, CRUSHED HIS SKULL. THE PILOT SAFELY EXITED THE AIRCRAFT BUT BECAME ENTANGLED IN BARBED WIRE. THE CREWCHIEF THEN RETURNED TO THE AIRCRAFT AND SHUT THE FUEL OFF. NEARBY PERSONNEL EFFECTED THE RESCUE OF ^MAJOR NIDEVER^, AFTER WHICH ALL THREE OCCUPANTS OF THE AIRCRAFT WERE PLACED ON A MEDEVAC HELICOPTER AND TAKEN TO A HOSPITAL.\\
This record was last updated on 05/25/1998
This information is available on CD-ROM.
Additional information is available on KIAs at http://www.coffeltdatabase.org
Please send additions or corrections to: The VHPA Webmaster Gary Roush.
KIA statistics
Return to the KIA panel date index
Date posted on this site: 11/13/2023
Copyright © 1998 - 2023 Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association