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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 12, 1989 · about 3:15 pm local time
- 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 · no longer on the register · 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
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 never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.