Bell 206B accident near Billings, Montana, September 4, 1982
On September 4, 1982, a Bell 206B (helicopter), registered N49593, was destroyed in an accident near Billings, Montana (Billings Logan Internt'L airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 4, 1982
- Place
- Billings, Montana · Billings Logan Internt'L
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206B · all 206Bs on the register
- Registration
- N49593 · no longer on the register · serial 176
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT DEPARTED LARAMIE AT APPROXIMATELY 1600 WITH A FULL LOAD OF FUEL. AT 1840 THE PLT CONTACTED BILLINGS TOWER & STATED HE HAD A LOW FUEL WARNING LIGHT. SEVERAL MINUTES LATER HE RADIOED THAT HE WAS GOING DOWN. A WITNESS OBSERVED THE ACFT COMING DOWN "REAL HARD." THE ACFT CRASHED APPROXIMATELY 4.5 MI SE OF THE ARPT. THE USABLE FUEL CAPACITY IS 74.97 GALS & THE AVERAGE FUEL BURN IS BETWEEN 24-26 GPH.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,241 hours in all; 220 in this make and model; 170 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,939 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 15 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20 (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C Laramie WY at 1:53 am
- Destination: C Billings MT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.
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.