Bell 206L-4 accident near East Cameron, February 14, 1995
On February 14, 1995 at about 9:34 pm local time, a Bell 206L-4 (helicopter), registered N172AL, was destroyed in an accident near East Cameron. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 5 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
INADVERTENT FLIGHT BY THE PILOT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC), AND HIS FAILURE TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE HELICOPTER AFTER BECOMING SPATIALLY DISORIENTED. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS, AND THE PILOT'S LACK OF RECENT INSTRUMENT EXPERIENCE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 14, 1995 · about 9:34 pm local time
- Place
- East Cameron
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 5 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206L-4 · all 206L-4s on the register
- Registration
- N172AL · registry record · serial 52065
- 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 1445 CST ON 2/14/95, THE HELICOPTER TOOK OFF ON A FLIGHT FROM AN OFF-SHORE PLATFORM IN THE GULF OF MEXICO TO INTERCOASTAL CITY, LA. DURING THE FLIGHT, THE PILOT MADE SEVERAL POSITION REPORTS WITH THE LAST ONE BEING 32 MILES SOUTH OF INTERCOASTAL CITY. AT 1534, HE MADE A SERIES OF MAYDAY TRANSMISSIONS INDICATING INADVERTENT FLIGHT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC). THE HELICOPTER, HOWEVER, WAS NOT CERTIFICATED FOR FLIGHT IN IMC. WHEN THE HELICOPTER DID N0T ARRIVE, A SEARCH WAS INITIATED, BUT SEARCH AND RESCUE EFFORTS WERE HAMPERED UNTIL 2/19/95 BY FOG AND IFR CEILINGS. PIECES OF THE HELICOPTER WERE FOUND WITH INDICATIONS THAT IT HAD IMPACTED THE WATER. ALSO, THE BODIES OF 4 OCCUPANTS WERE RECOVERED, BUT 1 OCCUPANT WAS NOT FOUND AND WAS PRESUMED TO HAVE BEEN FATALLY INJURED. LOW CEILINGS AND FOG PREVAILED ALONG THE GULF OF MEXICO AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. ON 11/18/94, THE PILOT HAD SATISFACTORILY COMPLETED A VFR ONLY FLIGHT CHECK, INCLUDING EMERGENCY VERTICAL HELICOPTER INSTRUMENT RECOVERY PROCEDURES. COMPANY RECORDS INDICATED HE HAD 0.20 HOUR OF INSTRUMENT HOOD TIME DURING THE PREVIOUS 6 MONTHS. BEFORE TAKEOFF, OTHER COMPANY PILOTS ADVISED THE ACCIDENT PILOT THAT WEATHER CONDITIONS WERE DETERIORATING AND VARIED FROM COMPANY MINIMUMS (500 FOOT CEILING AND 3 MILES VISIBILITY) TO OBSCURED SKIES WITH VISIBILITY LESS THAN 2 MILES IN FOG. HE ALSO ACKNOWLEDGED TO OTHER PILOTS THAT WEATHER ON THE PLATFORM WAS DETERIORATING AND THAT HE WAS DEPARTING.
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: instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,755 hours in all; 780 in this make and model; 283 in the last 90 days; 95 in the last 30 days; 2,786 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,560 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, February 1, 1995; 62 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,450 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C30P (turboshaft); 0 hours total
- Not recorded
- Operator: Offshore Logistics, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: 335 GM at 8:45 pm
- Destination: 7R4 Intracoastal LA
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 200 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number FTW95FA116.