Hughes 500-D accident near Bell Mountain, Alaska, January 12, 1989
On January 12, 1989 at about 3:15 pm local time, a Hughes 500-D (helicopter), registered N5074R, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bell Mountain, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT'S MISJUDGMENT OF HIS CLEARANCE ABOVE THE TERRAIN DUE TO DISTORTED VISUAL PERCEPTION. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE WHITEOUT CONDITION.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 12, 1989 · about 3:15 pm local time · cases in 1989
- Place
- Bell Mountain, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 500-D
- Registration
- N5074R · registry record · serial 1151D
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT ENCOUNTERED A COMPLETE WHITEOUT CONDITION DURING THE APPROACH AND HOVER ON A MOUNTAIN. THE PILOT STATED THAT AFTER TOUCHDOWN THE HELICOPTER ROLLED OVER ON ITS RIGHT SIDE.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,400 hours in all; 1,400 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 4,200 as pilot in command; 1,600 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,462 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 10, 1988; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,000 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20B (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Wasilla AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 5°F (-15°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N5074R the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N5074R on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Hughes 386 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Allison 250-C20B 113 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,932 since 1982 · 826 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,143 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N5074R 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC89LA033.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.