# Accident 19790916040069A: Bell 206BELL, Sitka, AK, September 16, 1979

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 16, 1979, 17:22 local time
- Place: Sitka, AK
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: To Vertical (Helicopter Only)
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Location: 57.0531° N, 135.3300° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Sitka, AK, within about 30 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=57.0531&lon=-135.3300&mi=10
- Aircraft: N16877 (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: BELL 206BELL
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 3,428 total, 582 in this make and model, 182 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ANC79DA093](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC79DA093) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19790916040069A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

PILOT ATTEMPTED TAKEOFF FROM UNSUITABLE TERRAIN. SKID CAUGHT TREE ROOT & TIPPED OVER, CAUSING SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB ANC79DA093](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC79DA093), Sep 16, 1979: Bell 206 (N16877), Sitka, AK, substantial damage

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.
