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2013 Helicópteros del Pacífico Mil Mi-8 crash

7 Apr 2013 · Near Lot 27, Perenco site, Loreto, Peru

Mil Mi-8P · Tail rotor control failure due to improper equipment stowage

From Iquitos, Loreto, Peru to Lot 67, Perenco site, Loreto, Peru

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Event

Event typeAccident: someone killed or seriously injured, or the aircraft substantially damaged (NTSB definition). Incident: an occurrence that affected or could have affected safety, short of that. Glossary
Accident
Event fatalities
13 · all aircraft and ground
Ground fatalities
Unknown
Occupants
13
Survivors
0
InjuriesFatal: death within 30 days. Serious: over 48 hours in hospital within a week, most broken bones, severe bleeding, nerve or organ damage, or serious burns. Minor: anything less. Glossary
Unknown
OperationWhat kind of flying it was, grouped by the rules it flew under: airline (US Part 121), air taxi and commuter (Part 135), general aviation (Part 91 and similar), military or government. Glossary
Charter & commuter

Mil Mi-8P

Aircraft type
Mil MI-8
Category
Helicopter · from aircraft type
RegistrationThe aircraft's tail number, such as N12345 or G-ABCD. Registrations are reissued, so the same one years apart can be a different aircraft. Glossary
OB-1916-P
Onboard fatalities
13
Route
From Iquitos, Loreto, PeruTo Lot 67, Perenco site, Loreto, Peru

Cause areas

  • Aircraft › Aircraft handling/service
  • Aircraft › Aircraft propeller/rotor
  • Personnel issues › Task performance

From the investigation findings the Wikipedia article reports, sorted into the NTSB's cause areas with AI assistance.

Approximate · Coordinates from the Wikipedia article; not checked against an investigation report.

From the Wikipedia article

On 7 April 2013, a Mil Mi-8 helicopter operated by Helicópteros del Pacífico (Helipac) broke up in flight and crashed en route from Iquitos to a Perenco site near the Curaray River, in the Loreto Region of Peru. All 13 people on board were killed. The occupants, all Peruvian nationals, were nine passengers and four crew. Among the passengers were Perenco workers and other contractors.

Investigation and cause

Investigation

The accident investigation by the Peruvian Comisión De Investigación De Accidentes De Aviación (Aviation Accidents Investigation Commission) established that while the aircraft was cruising at an altitude of 700 m, a luggage net that was improperly placed in a rear fuselage compartment became entangled with the tail rotor's transmission shaft and control cables, causing the cables to snap and resulting in a total loss of directional control.

The crew then attempted an emergency landing by performing an autorotation, but likely over-control by the pilot while flaring over densely forested terrain resulted in the main rotor's blades striking the tail boom, severing it from the fuselage. The aircraft then crashed to the ground out of control.

Text from the Wikipedia article “2013 Helicópteros del Pacífico Mil Mi-8 crash” (revision 1373206711, retrieved 2026-09-18) by its authors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Extracted as plain text: references, tables, images and some sections are left out. Read the article

Sources

Wikipedia article: 2013 Helicópteros del Pacífico Mil Mi-8 crash
Article
2013 Helicópteros del Pacífico Mil Mi-8 crash
Revision
1373206711 · 2026-09-04 · retrieved 2026-09-18
Wikidata
Q12154894
Licence
Text CC BY-SA 4.0, by the article's authors; Wikidata CC0; town positions GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Where each value comes from
Record
Wikipedia article "2013 Helicópteros del Pacífico Mil Mi-8 crash" (page 40395769, revision 1373206711)
Date
Wikipedia infobox: date
Place and country
Wikipedia infobox: site
Map position
Wikipedia article coordinates
Aircraft, operator and route
Wikipedia infobox: aircraft type, registration, operator, origin and destination; route airports from the linked airport articles' Wikidata codes (OurAirports)
Operation
Reviewed correction (2026-09-26): A helicopter company flying oil company workers and contractors to an oil field site: a helicopter service for hire. The article: "a Mil Mi-8 helicopter operated by Helicópteros del Pacífico (Helipac) broke up in flight and crashed en route from Iquitos to a Perenco site"
Fatalities
Wikipedia infobox: aircraft fatalities
Ground fatalities
not stated in the Wikipedia infobox
Summary
Wikipedia infobox: summary
Source notes (1)
  • Wikipedia · Facts from the Wikipedia article's infobox and coordinates, not checked against an investigation report. Independent review pending.