Enstrom F28 accident near West Chicago, Illinois, May 14, 1998
On May 14, 1998 at about 8:35 pm local time, a Enstrom F28 (helicopter), registered N86238, was substantially damaged in an accident near West Chicago, Illinois (West Chicago-Dupage airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the student pilot attempting a tailwind landing and improper compensation for the wind resulting in too high of a sink rate and the hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 14, 1998 · about 8:35 pm local time
- Place
- West Chicago, Illinois · West Chicago-Dupage · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Enstrom F28 · all F28s on the register
- Registration
- N86238 · registry record · serial 737
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The helicopter was substantially damaged during a hard landing and subsequent roll over during a positioning flight at the DuPage Airport. The solo student was practicing touch-and-goes on runway 19L when he asked for clearance to a Fixed Base Operator near runway 33. Reported weather, taken after the accident, recorded the winds from 140 at 9 knots. The pilot stated 'As I started to land, I know I had gotten myself in a bad situation when I realized my rate of descent was just over 500 FPM with slow forward airspeed.'
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: student
- Flight time: 45 hours in all; 45 in this make and model; 23 in the last 90 days; 18 in the last 30 days; 4 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,094 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 11, 1998; 7 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,600 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360-F1AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 33, 3,210 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from DPA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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 N86238 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.