No fatalities

ROBINSON HELICOPTER COMPANY R44 II accident at Ithaca, NE, 28 Jul 2022

Ithaca, NE, United States

On July 28, 2022, a ROBINSON HELICOPTER COMPANY R44 II operated by BLUE STEM LEASING LLC was involved in an aviation accident near Ithaca, NE. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from power lines during low level aerial application operations due to a distraction. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 2026-08-03Data APIEditorial standards

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from power lines during low level aerial application operations due to a distraction.

— NTSB Determination

Contributing factors

PilotAltitude — Not attained/maintainedAwareness of condition