Bell 47G-2 accident near Stockton, California, March 6, 1986
On March 6, 1986 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Bell 47G-2 (helicopter), registered N6727D, was destroyed in an accident near Stockton, California. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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
- March 6, 1986 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Stockton, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bell 47G-2 · all 47G-2s on the register
- Registration
- N6727D · no longer on the register · serial 2226
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT WAS MAKING A SLOW PASS AND DRAGGED ONE SPRAY BOOM ON THE GROUND. INSUFFICIENT AIRSPEED RESULTED IN LOSS OF CONTROL. HELICOPTER CRASHED.
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: 700 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 85 in the last 90 days; 700 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,075 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 24, 1986; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,850 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming VO-435-A1F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Stockton CA at 7:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; scat at 15,000 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 52°F (11°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.