| Crash location | 37.938055°N, 97.691389°W
Reported location is a long distance from the NTSB's reported nearest city. This often means that the location has a typo, or is incorrect. |
| Nearest city | Camdenton, MO
38.008090°N, 92.744629°W 269.4 miles away |
| Tail number | N725M |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 15 May 2013 |
| Aircraft type | Hughes 369D |
| Additional details: | None |
The purpose of the helicopter flight was to trim trees using an external load aerial power saw. The pilot stated that as he was trimming the trees, he saw a 6 to 8 inch piece of wood/tree flying upward on the left side of the helicopter. He stated he felt a momentary vibration as the wood contacted one of the main rotor blades, then everything returned to “normal.” The pilot made a precautionary landing in a nearby field without further incident. The damage to the main rotor blade was substantial and required replacement of the blade.
The piece of wood/tree that contacted the main rotor blade during the low altitude tree-trimming flight.