Helicopter Accidents

US Marine Corps accidents

Sikorsky S-65 H-53 Accidents

Year	Version	C/N
1967	ch-53a	65-076	153305 : HMH-461 w/o 23jun67 collision with UH-1B BuNo 63-8572 Jacksonville North Carolina. 22 fatalities
1967	ch-53a	65-076	153305 : Sikorsky S-65A, c/n 65-076, ff:?; del USMC as CH-53A 153305, unk; w/o when collided with UH-1B, 63-8572, while attempting to land near Jacksonville, NC, 23Jun67. [22 of 35 onboard killed.]
1968	ch-53a	65-014	151697 : w/o 24apr68 HMH-463 /YH
1968	ch-53a	65-040	152413 : w/o 19may68 HMH-463 /YH
1968	ch-53a	65-045	153276 : w/o 04mar68 HMH-463 /YH
1968	ch-53a	65-047	153278 : w/o 19feb68 HMH-463 /YH
1968	ch-53a	65-050	153281 : On May 1, 1968 SGT Donald R. Evans was a gunner on U.S. Marine Corps helicopter CH-53A tail number 153281 from the Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 463 (HMH-463). At 2056 hours the aircraft crashed into the sea while attempting a carrier landing about 22 miles northwest of Tan Me. Four survivors from the helicopter were rescued about an hour later but the fifth crewman (SGT Evans) could not be found. A search was requested by USS Valley Forge (LPH8). His remains were later recovered. Sourced from vhpa.org. See more at vvmf.org
1968	ch-53a	65-052	153283 : w/o 22feb68 HMH-463 /YH
1968	ch-53a	65-053	153284 : w/o 28jul68 HMH-463 /YH
1968	ch-53a	65-096	153710 : w/o 08jan68 HMH-463 /YH
1968	ch-53a	65-110	153724 : w/o 14feb68 with NATC
1968	ch-53a	65-138	154875 : Aircraft crashed on Toro Peak while installing communications equipment. 1 fatality 15 injuries. The crash site is still on Toro Peak (southern California north of San Diego) The largest pieces of the wreckage left is part of the tail section, main rotor gearbox and a section of the loading ramp. Lots of other smaller debris in the area as well.
1969	ch-53a	65-021	152394 : w/o 01nov69 HMH-361 /YN crashed into South China Sea. 4 fatalities
1969	ch-53a	65-049	153280 : w/o 04jul69 HMH-463 /YH
1969	ch-53a	65-051	153282 : w/o 01sep69 HMH-361 /YN crashed in Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam. 5 fatalities
1969	ch-53a	65-102	153716 : w/o 20mar69 with HMHT-301
1969	ch-53a	65-116	153730 : w/o 05may69 HMH-462 /YF-
1969	ch-53a	65-124	153738 : asg HMH-462; w/o 09apr69 hit ammo crates with tail rotor at the ammo dump at LZ Vandergriff Vietnam setting the entire dump on fire
1970	ch-53a	65-077	153306 : w/o 6may70 with HMH-363
1970	ch-53d	65-165	156661 : w/o 13sep70 HMH-463 /YH
1970	ch-53d	65-169	156665 : w/o 14sep70 HMH-463 /YH
1970	ch-53d	65-174	156670 : w/o 26oct70 HMH-463 /YH
1970	ch-53d	65-179	156675 : w/o 8feb70 with HMH-362
1971	ch-53d	65-164	156660 : w/o 25feb71 HMH-463 /YH
1971	ch-53d	65-171	156667 : w/o 18feb71 HMH-463 /YH
1971	ch-53d	65-249	157149 : w/o 21apr71
1972	ch-53a	65-100	153714 : w/o 29feb72 with HMH-363
1972	ch-53d	65-162	156658 : w/o 11jul72 with HMM-165
1972	ch-53d	65-247	157147 : w/o 13may72 crashed near Hue, South Vietnam while inserting S.Vietnam marines. Pilots were Capt fine ,Lt Furman, Corp Ken Gatewood, Corp Rick Buffington and myself Sarg P J Douglas. The a/c was destoryed by F-4 Phantoms after our e-vac
1972	ch-53d	65-320	157744 : w/o 28jan72 with HMH-362
1973	ch-53a	65-095	153709 : Crashed at Naval Air Test Center Patuxent River Md, spring of 1973, complete loss. Lost one soul, Crew Chief Marine Sgt Tom Henderson. Navy Pilot, Civilian Test Pilot and Army Crew Chief escaped with non life threatening injuries.
1973	ch-53a	65-109	153723 : w/o 25feb73 HMH-772
1973	ch-53a	65-136	154873 : This a/c crashed a few days after Marine HMH-463 YH-11 went down in North Vietnam waters sweeping mines. Both crashes were a result of tail rotor pitch link failures. This crash resulted in all 53's being grounded and new more robust pitch links being installed. Neither crash caused fatalities
1973	ch-53d	65-168	156664 : w/o 02jul73 HMH-463 /YH
1973	ch-53d	65-279	157153 : Pat Boots at New River Air Station :
1973	ch-53d	65-286	157160 : Yankee Hotel 11 was actually air borne dragging mine gear in the water to mine sweeping area when the tail rotor pitch link failed. I was the crew chief on this aircraft when she went down. I was by the ramp when the tail rotor separated and the aircraft began a left to right yaw increasing in degrees rapidly until the aircraft began rotating 360 degrees in a nose down larger 360 arc. One hell of a ride. Sgt. John J. Walsh
1973	ch-53d	65-315	157739 : w/o 27jan73 HMH-462 /YF-
1974	ch-53a	65-027	152400 : w/o 26jul74
1974	ch-53d	65-200	156953 : w/o 30may74 HMH-463 /YH
1974	ch-53d	65-297	157171 : w/o 19jul74 with HMM-162
1975	ch-53a	65-065	153296 : w/o 08jan75 crashed in Maryland
1975	ch-53a	65-108	153722 : w/o 18feb75 with HMT-301
1975	ch-53d	65-205	156958 : w/o 8jan75 with HMH-362
1975	ch-53d	65-313	157737 : w/o 7feb75 with HMM-264
1976	ch-53a	65-020	152393 : Non fatal, hulk was still out in the trees at NAS Willow Grove in 81
1976	ch-53a	65-084	153313 : w/o 26jul76 HMH-361
1976	ch-53d	65-319	157743 : Crashed 6 miles west of Naha Okinawa over the water. Pilot ran out of fuel and auto rotated to 50 feet above the water fell the rest of the way to the ocean. 4 souls on board. No survivors. Sgt. John Christian Crew Chief.
1977	ch-53a	65-057	153288 : w/o 10mar77 HMH-361 /YN-21 unk
1977	ch-53a	65-122	153736 : w/o 28dec77 HMH-361 /YN to be confirmed
1977	ch-53d	65-203	156956 : Five Marines were killed. There was one fatality on the second aircraft the Crew Chief was killed by the Fire Bottle above the Crew Chief's seat. I guarded his aircraft until we were relieved, he was my room mate.
1977	ch-53d	65-204	156957 : w/o 8dec77 with HMM-261
1977	ch-53d	65-232	157139 : I was with lsu foxtrot 3/4 it was fully loaded internally and lifting an external load. cable snapped up into the rotor blades. Myself and others were sent to recover the bodies. I still have nightmares. L/cpl P.H.Robinson H
1977	ch-53d	65-293	157167 : Pilots of the second aircraft survived. Everyone in the lead aircraft perished. I was in HMH-461 but deployed to the Med when it happened.
1978	ch-53a	65-067	153297 : w/o 2aug78
1978	ch-53d	65-287	157161 : w/o 6mar78 with HMT-204
1978	ch-53d	65-311	157735 : w/o 20mar78 with HMM-264
1979	ch-53d	65-209	156962 : w/o 15oct79 with HMM-264
1979	ch-53d	65-213	156966 : w/o 15dec79 with HMT-204
1979	ch-53d	65-306	157730 : w/o 2aug79
1980	ch-53d	65-183	156952 : w/o 18may80 HMH-463 /YH
1980	ch-53d	65-288	157162 : w/o 30may80 with HMM-263 Det 1
1981	ch-53a	65-105	153719 : During CQ hit another Squadron helicopter chained down on deck but running
1981	ch-53a	65-113	153727 : w/o 10feb81 HMH-462 /YF-
1981	ch-53d	65-307	157731 : w/o 17sep81 with HMM-263
1982	ch-53a	65-033	152406 : AMARG; 2001 still
1982	ch-53a	65-083	153312 : w/o 14sep82 crashed into North Sea off Denmark during NATO exercise Northern Wedding. 5 fatalities
1983	ch-53d	65-277	157151 : w/o with HMH-461
1983	ch-53d	65-278	157152 : w/o 28mar83 with HMH-362
1984	ch-53d	65-225	157132 : One of the Best Aircrews in the Corps, Lost in Bad Weather using NVG's
1985	ch-53d	65-231	157138 : 17 Marines died, 11 from HMH-462, 15 miles south of Yakushima, Japan. Main rotor gearbox failed, ceased mid-air while trying to set a/c in the water due to the mechanical failure emergency
1987	ch-53d	65-280	157154 : w/o 22jan87 HMH-462 /YF; 24mar95 on El Mirage Field, CA scrapyard, only tail
1988	ch-53d	65-289	157163 : Aircraft crashed on Shikoku Island, Japan (about 25 miles south of MCAS Iwakuni) on 25 June 1988 with seven fatalities
1989	ch-53d	65-233	157140 : USMC; HMH-363 w/o 20mar89 at Pohang, South Korea. 19 fatalities, 15 survivors
1997	ch-53a	65-119	903 : ex 403
1999	ch-53d	65-220	157129 : w/o 23jun99, HMH-366 /HH
2004	ch-53d	65-318	157742 : crashed in Okinawa university after clipping building
2006	ch-53d	65-246	157146 : w/o 07sep06 HMH-463 /YH-24
2012	ch-53d	65-228	157135 : w/o 21jun12 crashed inside the Sarabagh military base, Khost City, Afghanistan
2012	ch-53d	65-300	157174 : HMH-363 w/o 19 Helmand Province, Afghanistan, 6 fatalities