Bell 206 accident near Juneau, Alaska, November 20, 1994
On November 20, 1994 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Bell 206 (helicopter), registered N49686, was involved in an accident near Juneau, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). The NTSB record does not give the injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE EMPLOYEE'S DISREGARD FOR COMPANY TRAINING AND POLICIES ABOUT THE DANGERS OF HELICOPTER ROTOR BLADES. THE RUNNING AIRCRAFT WITH THE ROTORS TURNING WAS A FACTOR IN THE ACCIDENT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 20, 1994 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Juneau, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206 · all 206s on the register
- Registration
- N49686 · no longer on the register · serial 1905
- Damage
- Not recorded
- 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 HAD LANDED A HELICOPTER AND LOCKED THE CONTROLS DOWN WHILE THE ENGINE AND ROTORS WERE TURNING AT FLIGHT IDLE. HE THEN EXITED THE AIRCRAFT AND BEGAN REFUELING FROM THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE HELICOPTER. A COMPANY EMPLOYEE APPROACHED THE PILOT AND INQUIRED ABOUT GETTING A RIDE TO THE ANTICIPATED DESTINATION FOR THE FLIGHT. AFTER AGREEMENT, THE EMPLOYEE STARTED TO WALK TOWARD HIS TRUCK TO RETRIEVE HIS LUGGAGE AND IN DOING SO, DUCKED UNDER THE TAIL BOOM OF THE HELICOPTER, WALKING TO THE LEFT REAR OF THE AIRCRAFT. THE EMPLOYEE WAS STRUCK BY THE TAIL ROTOR BLADE. AN FAA INSPECTOR REPORTED THAT THE EMPLOYEE HAD WORKED AROUND HELICOPTERS IN THE PAST AND HAD RECEIVED COMPANY TRAINING CONCERNING THE DANGERS OF HELICOPTER ROTOR BLADES.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: instructor: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,357 hours in all; 62 in this make and model; 158 in the last 90 days; 18 in the last 30 days; 2,300 as pilot in command; 1,051 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,935 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 18, 1994; 96 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20B (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 27°F (-3°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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 N49686 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.