Helicopter sling load accident/incident survey: 1968 - 1974

During the period considered a mean of eleven accidents per year occurred and a mean of eleven persons were killed or seriously injured per year. Forty-one percent of the accidents occurred during hover, and 63 percent of the accidents had pilot error listed as a cause/factor. Many accidents involved pilots losing control of the helicopter or allowing a collision with obstructions to occur. There was a mean of 58 incidents each year and 51 percent of these occurred during cruise.