# Incident 19971015035599I: Bell 206L1, Mexico, NY, October 15, 1997

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 15, 1997, 15:40 local time
- Place: Mexico, NY
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 43.4652° N, 76.2326° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Mexico, NY, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=43.4652&lon=-76.2326&mi=10
- Aircraft: N16SP (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: BELL 206L1
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 6,270 total, 100 in this make and model, 35 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19971015035599I

## Narrative

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

NARRATIVE: ON 10/15/97 AT 1540 EDT, A BELL 206 HELICOPTER, N16SP, OPERATED BY THE NY STATE POLICE, STRUCK A WIRE WHILE ON A CRIMINAL SEARCH AT MEXICO, NY. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME AND NO VFR FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE HELICOPTER WAS NOT DAMAGED AND THE PILOT, SGT. GARY KILPATRICK, AND PASSENGER WERE NOT INJURED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT SYRACUSE, NY. THIS INCIDENT IS CONSIDERED CLOSED.

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.

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