NTSB investigations: Bell UH-1L

5 cases on aircraft the registry lists as Bell UH-1L, where the first occurrence was “Airframe/component/system failure/malfunction”. Aircraft are matched to the registry by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model, so older matches can be wrong.

Cases per year

19862026
NTSB investigations: Bell UH-1L per year, 1986–2026: 5 cases
19861
19881
19893

Latest cases

Query with SQL
duckdb -csv -c "SELECT c.\"ntsbNumber\", c.\"eventDate\", c.\"eventType\", c.\"eventCity\", c.\"eventStateOrRegion\", a.n_number, a.\"aircraftMake\", a.\"aircraftModel\", c.\"highestInjuryLevel\", c.\"totalFatal\", c.\"completionStatus\", c.report_url
  FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_case_detail.parquet' c LEFT JOIN 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_aircrafts.parquet' a ON a.case_mkey = c.\"mKey\" AND a.position = 1
  WHERE c.\"mKey\" IN (SELECT x.case_mkey FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_aircrafts.parquet' x WHERE x.aircraft_model_code IN ('1181401')
      AND EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_occurrences.parquet' o WHERE o.case_mkey = x.case_mkey AND o.aircrafts_position = x.position AND o.\"occurrenceNumber\" = 1 AND o.\"occurrenceCode\" = 130))
  ORDER BY c.\"eventDate\" DESC, c.\"ntsbNumber\" DESC"

Prints the whole list as CSV. It reads the release’s Parquet files over HTTPS, so there’s nothing to download first. Install DuckDB to run it.

NTSB LAX90DUJ05Accident · No injuriesFinal reportBell UH-1E · Mesa, AZThe inflight separation of the tail rotor due to improper maintenance procedures and the installation of incorrect attachment hardware on the tail rotor blade pitch change linkages.Nov 4, 1989 · N138US · DestroyedNTSB SEA89FA111Accident · Serious injuriesField investigationFinal reportOregon Helicopters UH-1L · Baring, WAFatigue failure of the tail rotor 42 degree gear box due to pilot induced overstress. Navy data and FAA type certificate limitations were not adhered to.Jun 14, 1989 · N157LC · DestroyedNTSB ATL89FA130Accident · Serious injuriesField investigationFinal reportBell UH-1E · Aiken, SCImproper installation of a tail rotor pitch change crosshead retention bolt by the company mechanic, which resulted in loosening of the bolt and eventual failure of the tail rotor assembly/blade and subsequent loss of control. Trees at the crash site…Apr 17, 1989 · N118HS · Substantial damageNTSB SEA88LA143Accident · Minor injuriesLimited investigationFinal reportBell UH-1E · North Bend, ORDrg a logging opn, the plt noted an apparent transmission malfunction. An autorotative landing was made on unprepared terrain & the helicopter was damaged. An investigation revealed the tail rotor drive input gear in the 42 deg gearbox had failed from…Aug 4, 1988 · N151LC · Substantial damageNTSB SEA86FA137Accident · 1 fatalField investigationFinal reportBell UH-1L · Wenatchee, WAN4964N, a Bell UH-1L, was being operated in logging ops by an experienced, military trained plt who possessed 6000 hrs of flt experience in model. While lifting a sling load gnd crew rptd smoke from the tail rotor area. Plt released sling load & acknowledged…May 31, 1986 · N4964N · Destroyed