Bell 206B accident near Logan, West Virginia, April 26, 1996
On April 26, 1996 at about 1:45 pm local time, a Bell 206B (helicopter), registered N111PM, was substantially damaged in an accident near Logan, West Virginia. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 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 pilot's failure to maintain an adequate fuel supply for the flight which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion, and the loss of rotor rpm during the autorotation. The downhill sloping terrain was a related factor.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 26, 1996 · about 1:45 pm local time
- Place
- Logan, West Virginia · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206B · all 206Bs on the register
- Registration
- N111PM · registry record · serial 1770
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that the helicopter was in cruise flight at 600 feet above ground level when the engine lost power. He entered an autorotational descent, but was forced to try to extend the glide because of rough, downhill sloping terrain. The rotor RPM decayed, and at touchdown the main rotor flexed down and severed the tail boom. Postaccident inspection revealed '...less than (1) one quart [of fuel] available in fuel cell.' The pilot reported that he had exhausted the helicopter's fuel supply.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 15,340 hours in all; 11,200 in this make and model; 180 in the last 90 days; 60 in the last 30 days; 14,500 as pilot in command; 950 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,158 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 4, 1996; 93 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20 (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HTS Huntington WV at 12:15 pm
- Destination: Rita WV
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,000 ft; scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:50 pm from BLF, 48 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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 N111PM 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 IAD96LA067.