- Date
- March 17, 1988, 20:30 local (Mar 18, 1988, 02:30 UTC)
- Place
- Taylorville, IL
- Injuries
- 2 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N5759HBell 206L-1
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report March 13, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880317005779A
- Case key
- 13934
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The helicopter experienced a loss of control while in slow flight out of ground effect. The helicopter impacted the ground in a black plowed field during a period of low visibility due to snow. The occurrence happened in a remote area with few ground reference lights.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5759H
- Reported as
- Bell 206L-1
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 45556
- Airframe hours
- 1,485
- Engine
- Allison 250-C28B, 580 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Illinois Prairie Air, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Joel A. Schneider
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · January 3, 1988 · 88 hours before
- Departed
- 1H2 · Effingham, IL
- Destination
- SPI · Springfield, IL
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 37
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 3,000 total · 800 in this make and model · 2,730 as pilot in command · 85 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 270° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 2 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 400 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 32 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SPI, 23 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.