- Date
- February 16, 1988, 08:40 local (13:40 UTC)
- Place
- Martinsville, IN
- Injuries
- 2 serious, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N21197Bell 206B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 13, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880216002579A
- Case key
- 14046
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
While engaged in intentional low level flight for the purpose of doing advertising photography, the helicopter experienced a wire strike. The wire wound around the main rotor and pulled the helicopter to the ground. The helicopter received substantial damage. The pilot and one passenger received serious injuries and one passenger sustained no reported injuries.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N21197
- Reported as
- Bell 206B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 3455
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20J, 317 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Roto-Whirl, Inc., doing business as Roto-Whirl
- Registered owner
- Michael Zicka Leasing Co.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · February 21, 1987
- Departed
- IND · Indianapolis, IN
- Destination
- IND
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
- 45
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 10,111 total · 2,705 in this make and model · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 112° at 19 knots
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 25 °F, dew point 18 °F
- Observed at
- IND, 25 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.