Bell 206L-3 accident near Big Timber, Montana, June 2, 1989
On June 2, 1989 at about 5:35 am local time, a Bell 206L-3 (helicopter), registered N76KM, was destroyed in an accident near Big Timber, Montana. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 4 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT DURING TAKEOFF, DUE TO SPATIAL DISORIENTATION, WHICH RESULTED IN A COLLISION WITH THE TERRAIN. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE: DARK NIGHT, PILOT'S VISUAL PERCEPTION, INADEQUATE INITIAL TRAINING OF THE PILOT BY THE OPERATOR, THE PILOT'S LACK OF FAMILIARITY WITH THE GEOGRAPHICAL AREA, AND THE COMPANY'S INSUFFICIENT STANDARDS/REQUIREMENTS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 2, 1989 · about 5:35 am local time
- Place
- Big Timber, Montana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206L-3 · all 206L-3s on the register
- Registration
- N76KM · registry record · serial 51103
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT ABT 2158 MDT, THE EMERG MED SVC (EMS/MEDEVAC) HELICOPTER (HEL) PLT CTCD BILLINGS TWR & ADZD HE WOULD BE MAKING APCHS TO SAINT VINCENTS HOSP FOR (NGT) CURRENCY. APRX 9 MIN LATER, HE CTCD THE TWR AGAIN & ADZD HE WAS BEING DISPATCHED ON AN EMS FLT. THE EMS FLT WAS TO A RANCH (WNW OF BILLINGS). THE PLT HAD DIFFICULTY FINDING THE RANCH AT NGT, BUT ARRIVED AT 2238 MDT. THE PATIENT WAS LOADED & THE PLT WAS ADZD OF TRRN CONDS. A WITNESS SAID THE HEL LIFTED OFF FAST, THEN SWIVELEDARND QUICKLY (TOWARD EAST) & TOOK OFF W/O HESITATION. AFTER DEPG, THE HEL CROSSED A HILL & CRASHED AT HI SPD ON LWR TRRNIN A SLGT NOSE LOW, RGT BANK ATTITUDE, HDG 330 DEG. NO PREIMPACT MECH PRBLM WAS FND. THE PLT HAD BEEN RECENTLY HIRED BY THE OPERATOR; PREV EMPLOYMENT INVOLVED FLYING A DISSIMILAR HEL (BK-105) IN THE GULF OF MEXICO AREA, LIMITED TO DAY VFR. THE PLT'S LAST RECORDED NGT FLT WAS ON 6/16/87; HIS LAST RECORDED INST FLT WAS PRIOR TO JUNE 1984. NO RECORD WAS FND OF FAMILIARIZATION TRAINING FOR THE GEOGRAPHICAL AREA. RELATIVES OF THE PATIENT DESCRIBED THE ACDNT AREA AS A BLACK HOLE.
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: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 9,036 hours in all; 915 in this make and model; 51 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,816 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, May 22, 1989; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C30P (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: NONE at 4:08 am
- Destination: NONE Billings MT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 140° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:00 am from BIL, 35 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| 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.
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.