Hiller UH-12D accident near Bakersfield, California, April 4, 1988
On April 4, 1988 at about 8:58 pm local time, a Hiller UH-12D (helicopter), registered N646JS, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bakersfield, California (Bakersfield Muni). It was a ferry flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 4, 1988 · about 8:58 pm local time · cases in 1988
- Place
- Bakersfield, California · Bakersfield Muni · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hiller UH-12D · all UH-12Ds on the register
- Registration
- N646JS · registry record · serial 1299
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Ferry flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE HELICOPTER ENCOUNTERED WEATHER WHILE ENROUTE TO ITS DEST AND DIVERTED TO AN ALTERNATE ARPT. IT OVERFLEW THE ALTERNATE AND, AFTER THE ENGINE FAILED FROM FUEL EXHAUSTION, CRASHED DURING AN AUTOROTATIVE FORCED LANDING.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 8,168 hours in all; 85 in this make and model; 114 in the last 90 days; 85 in the last 30 days; 8,023 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,010 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 10, 1987; 80 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,750 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming VO-540-C2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: West Farm Air INC.
The flight
- Departed from: 3CA4 Huron CA at 6:45 pm
- Destination: WJF Lancaster CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,800 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:15 pm from BLF, 7 miles away
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.
Other NTSB records under N646JS the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N646JS on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Hiller UH-12 217 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Hiller 242 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming VO-540-C2A 6 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Bakersfield Municipal · nearest airport
- General WM J Fox Airfield · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in California 9,080 since 1982 · 1,098 in the last ten years
- California 27,686 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N646JS 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/LAX88LA153.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.