Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from a power line during the aerial application flight, which resulted in collision with the power line and subsequent impact with terrain.
NTSB analysis
The pilot was performing aerial application operations when the helicopter collided with a power line and subsequently impacted terrain. The pilot was fatally injured. The accident occurred during the pilot’s 21st pass over the field that day, and the pilot had been maneuvering to avoid the wire numerous times prior to the accident. Examination of the helicopter revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The circumstances of the accident are consistent with the pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from the power line during the aerial application flight.
Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN21LA225 for the full record.
Event
- Date
- May 18, 2021
- Type
- Accident
- Place
- Ulysses, Kansas
- Nearest airport
- (n/a)
- Highest injury
- Fatal
- Fatal injuries
- 1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC)
- Light
- Day
Bell OH58A
- N-number
- N176SJ
- Category
- Helicopter
- Year built
- 1970
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Operating rule
- Part 137 (agricultural)
- Purpose of flight
- Aerial application
From the NTSB aviation accident database: N-registered aircraft, events since 2008, data through Oct 28, 2026. The file is published monthly, so the latest weeks are incomplete and recent records can change. The official source is the NTSB aviation investigation search. CheckAero is independent and not affiliated with the NTSB.