- Date
- March 22, 1983, 13:15 local (21:15 UTC)
- Place
- Salinas, CA
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N8163JBell 206 B III
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19830322008449A
- Case key
- 23439
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
Purpose of flt was to transport a technician & his equipment to a mountain top to service a microwave antenna site. Cloud coverage precluded a landing at the site, but the plt was able to land in a clearing on the eastern ridge line about 100 yds below the site. The pax deplaned, & the plt stated that if the wx improved he would fly up to the site. As the pax arrived at the site, he heard the helicopter start its eng & proceed to fly toward his position. It hovered for a short time, & then began descending toward the sw into a cloud cover. About 20 secs later he heard the crash. He located the crash site through the dense cloud cover by smelling the burning wreckage. The acft was not equipped with a gyro horizon or instrumented for IFR operations.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8163J
- Reported as
- Bell 206 B III
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 552
- Airframe hours
- 14,204
- Engine
- Allison 250 C-20B, 420 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 135
- Registered owner
- Verticare Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · March 7, 1983 · 25 hours before
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
- 53
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Unknown, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 13,000 total · 1,500 in this make and model · 12,500 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 20,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 61 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SNS, 13 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.