Hiller H-23A accident near Madera, California, December 13, 1985
On December 13, 1985 at about 1:59 pm local time, a Hiller H-23A (helicopter), registered N3107G, was destroyed in an accident near Madera, California. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 13, 1985 · about 1:59 pm local time
- Place
- Madera, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Hiller H-23A · all H-23As on the register
- Registration
- N3107G · registry record · serial 236
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE HELICOPTER CRASHED DURING A LOCAL FROST PROTECTION FLIGHT. AFTER ABOUT ONE HOUR OF LIGHT, IN DARK NIGHT TIME CONDITIONS, FOG APPEARED SUDDENLY AND THE PILOT BECAME DISORIENTED AND CRASHED INTO THE GROUND.
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
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,285 hours in all; 3 in this make and model; 31 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 3,120 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,113 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 10, 1985; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,500 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Franklin 6V-335-B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Madera CA at 12:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
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 LAX86LA065.