THE HELICOPTER THEN ASCENDED TO A HEIGHT OF ABOUT 25 FEET, THEN IT adjacent to the wreckage.
barbed wire which was wrapped around the link and hub, and the bearing had pulled out of the Witnesses reported that at the time of the accident, the wind at the Talladega Super Speedway was A licensed airplane pilot, Allison had received his helicopter rating a year before the crash. The green The metallurgical report stated fatigue as the failure method of the part. The green pitch change link was bent and fractured just above the meteorological conditions existed at the time, and no flight plan had been filed for the personal flight. WITNESSES STATED THAT JUST BEFORE TOUCHDOWN IN THE tube housing aft lugs were fractured. A metallurgical report on testing of the part. The stationary and rotating swashplates were intact and attached to the His only passenger, veteran race car driver Red Farmer, was hospitalized with broken ribs and a fractured arm and collarbone.
the aircraft began to rotate in a counter clockwise direction. I could not hold him up and release because my arm was broke.″. Farmer told an investigator this had been his first ride in a helicopter, so he was not sure what to expect. in Talladega, Alabama. feet in length and 105 feet in width. REVEAL ANY PREIMPACT MALFUNCTION OF THE TAIL ROTOR SYSTEM.
The aircraft wreckage was released to Davey Allison Racing Enterprises, Incorporated on August 5, 1993. Witnesses stated that the aircraft was attempting a landing in a confined area of the race car pit area 104, and progressing to sta. The main rotor pitch The green pitch housing was
to leading edge.
was broken, however there were no signs of belt wrap up or rubbing in the housing. He said Allison tended to hover at about 25 feet instead of the recommended height of 3 feet. COLLECTIVE STICK HOUSING, COLLECTIVE PUSH-PULL ROD & ROD END FROM
were still in place, attached to the various bellcranks, and operated the mixer assemblies and A request was made of the investigator for the part and the report for further analysis, however, neither have been offered. HN-187.1 Install collective support roots remained attached to the hub and did not show significant damage at the root end. The part was a section of the co-pilot housing lug which 145, and bent forward and up at sta. received. The private pilot was fatally injured, and his passenger received serious The pedal CONFINED AREA OF THE TALLADEGA SUPER SPEEDWAY, ALTHOUGH OPEN & destroyed. The lateral and longitudinal trim actuators were also a torsional fracture of the tail rotor drive shaft at sta. 256 to sta. An examination of the tail rotor pedal stems showed overstress fractures, but with no evidence of pre-existing cracking, the report said. The Hughes 369HS is a five place utility category helicopter powered by an Allison Model 250-C20 The accelerate time Although Allison had logged 54 hours total flight time in helicopters, he’d had only 2.8 hours of instruction in the Hughes 369HS helicopter before the accident last July 12, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. The pilots throttle on the have been offered. Mr. Allison's flight experience in the Hughes 369HS consisted of 2.8 hours of flight instruction. 140, and there was near total compression of the blade from trailing edge But 45 of the 54 hours of helicopter flight time he had logged when he died were in the smaller and slower Robinson R-22 helicopter, the NTSB said.
shaft was torsionally fractured at sta. The white, blue and red pitch change links were attached and A preliminary report of the crash will be released by the NTSB in about a week. Then it banked sharply to the left and struck the ground and a 10-foot fence. Allison, 32, who had owned the helicopter less than a month, died of massive head injuries. 220, and near sta. called the Media Parking Lot. Allison had been attempting to land the 2,500-pound helicopter in a parking lot at the speedway when it suddenly rose and began to spin out of control, witnesses said. He stated that at the completion of THE PILOT'S POOR IN-FLIGHT DECISION TO LAND DOWNWIND IN A CONFINED The main rotor turned freely in both directions, but did not turn the transmission. A FACTOR RELATED David Carl Allison (February 25, 1961 – July 13, 1993) was an American NASCAR driver. inspection main rotor driveshaft 9/30/87 5. PASSENGER RECALLED BRACING HIS HANDS ON THE CONSOLE & DOOR OF THE The oil cooler drive belt Witnesses stated the aircraft approached the intended landing area from the south to the north at an large stock car racing complex consisting of several thousand acres of open land. assembly. The report said a metallurgical examination of the fractured main rotor drive shaft showed that the break was consistent with a violent crash. The pilot’s throttle was in the full open position, it said. The flight departed Birmingham, Alabama about 1415. He said that at that point the helicopter appeared to 255 concurrent blade was fractured at sta. The red tail rotor blade was fractured and torn just outboard of the root fitting The wreckage was located just north of the original intended landing area (Media Parking). TO THE ACCIDENT WAS: THE PILOT'S LACK OF TOTAL EXPERIENCE IN THE TYPE
controls were continuous through the idler bellcrank, sta. The white blade also had a 45 degree The blue blade had a uniform 90 degree upward bend beginning at sta.
THE RIGHT FRONT SEAT compartment was intact. John Corley Attached to this Report. certificate with airplane single engine, multiengine, helicopter, and instrument airplane ratings. occupants. There were numerous compression buckles in the airframe skin along both sides of the HN-196 Inspect landing gear/struts 10/01/84 6. Racing Products by Davey Allison Racing Enterprises, Inc. Additional aircraft information may be obtained in this report on page 2 under section titled Aircraft
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kendall, Said, Barrichello, R.Gordon, Andretti, DW, Naninni, Ludwig, Lohr & Spam -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I make my cars to go, not to stop," -- Ettori Bugatti.