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| Date: | Friday 5 December 2025 |
| Time: | c 09:00 LT |
| Type: |  Hughes 369D |
| Owner/operator: | AIR2 LLC opb. JBI Helicopter Services |
| Registration: | N161LA |
| MSN: | 711015D |
| Year of manufacture: | 1981 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Locust Grove, Mayes County, OK -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | External load operation |
| Departure airport: | MidAmerica Industrial Park Airport, OK (H71) |
| MidAmerica Industrial Park Airport, OK (H71) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
A Hughes 369D crashed near Locust Grove, Mayes County, Oklahoma (SE of Pryor, Oklahoma) during powerline stringing (i.e. installing new cables between pylons).
Witnesses reported seeing the helicopter hovering before it "suddenly flipped over backwards and crashed nose-first into the ground".
The sole pilot perished and the helicopter destroyed.
The helicopter was contracted by hydroelectric power utility, the Grand River Dam Authority.
Sources:
https://eu.oklahoman.com/story/news/state/2025/12/05/helicopter-crash-in-oklahoma-leaves-one-dead-ohp-reports/87630929007/
https://www.newson6.com/tulsa-oklahoma-news/1-killed-in-mayes-county-helicopter-crash
https://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/helicopter-crashed-near-locust-grove
https://registry.faa.gov/AircraftInquiry/Search/NNumberResult?NNumberTxt=161LA
https://www.flightradar24.com/data/aircraft/n161la#3d621db3
https://cdn.jetphotos.com/full/6/543205_1700095292.jpg (photo)
History of this aircraft
Ex N20380, C-GIKB, N5038N
Location
Media:
NTSB is investigating the Dec. 5 crash of an MD Helicopters MD369D near Pryor, Oklahoma.
— NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) December 5, 2025
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 05-Dec-2025 16:42 | gerard57 | Added |
| 05-Dec-2025 17:08 | ASN | Updated [Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Nature, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 05-Dec-2025 17:11 | ASN | Updated |
| 05-Dec-2025 17:56 | ASN | Updated [Aircraft type, Phase, Source, ] |
| 05-Dec-2025 18:47 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category, ] |
| 06-Dec-2025 14:10 | RobertMB | Updated [Phase, Source, Embed code, Category, ] |
| 06-Dec-2025 14:36 | Aerossurance | Updated [Time, Location, Nature, Destination airport, Embed code, Damage, Narrative, ] |
| 07-Dec-2025 07:54 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Registration, Cn, Operator, Source, ] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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