Bell 206B accident near Corpus Christi, Texas, June 7, 1998
On June 7, 1998 at about 10:44 pm local time, a Bell 206B (helicopter), registered N16814, was substantially damaged in an accident near Corpus Christi, Texas. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The failure of the tail rotor drive shaft due to the separation of a bolt at one of the drive shaft disc couplings for an undetermined reason, which resulted in the pilot's inability to maintain directional control during landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 7, 1998 · about 10:44 pm local time
- Place
- Corpus Christi, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206B · all 206Bs on the register
- Registration
- N16814 · registry record · serial 2229
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The helicopter experienced a tail rotor drive shaft failure while on final approach to landing. Approximately 45 to 50 feet AGL, the pilot heard a 'loud snapping sound,' which was followed by a 'loss of tail rotor control.' An autorotation was initiated, and subsequently, the helicopter landed 'hard' on the grassy staging field and came to a stop upright. Examination of the helicopter revealed that two of the tail rotor drive shaft segments were fractured. Additionally, one of the two bolts connecting the aft end of one of the fractured segments to a disc coupling (Thomas Coupling) was missing. The missing bolt was not recovered, although a nut and two beveled washers were found on top of the tail boom beneath the driveshaft. An examination of the remaining bolt revealed that it exhibited fretting, wear and deformation to only the last two and one-half threads. Review of the maintenance records revealed no entries indicating that any of the tail rotor drive shaft segments were removed in the two years preceding the accident.
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; single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 9,583 hours in all; 3,072 in this make and model; 105 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 9,434 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,107 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 21, 1998; 53 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20B (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 090° at 18 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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 N16814 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 FTW98LA260.