Sikorsky MH-53M Pave Low IV Sikorsky S-65C c/n 65-388, ff? del USAF as HH-53C, 73-1650, unk conv to MH-53M, unk.
1984-11-14
USAF conv HH-53H 20th SOS w/o 14nov84 near Pope AFB North Carolina, tail rotor separated from aircraft in flight 20th SOS
Acft completed the low-level and was climbing to the AR track. The acft behind advsd they had pieces coming off around the TR. Suddenly the entire TR and gear box separated from the pylon. Crew shut the engines down and autorotated into a field. Acft landed hard and was not repairable BUT everybody walked away from the wreck. Cause of the mishap was failure of the TGB pylon mount lugs due to corrosion.