Bell 206B accident near Centreville, Alabama, October 5, 1999
On October 5, 1999 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Bell 206B (helicopter), registered N1285S, was destroyed in an accident near Centreville, Alabama. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate preflight inspection of the helicopter's fuel system resulting in an in-flight loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of overboard porting of fuel when the airframe fuel filter was left in the 'drain and locked' position and the subsequent collision with trees during an attempted autorotation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 5, 1999 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Centreville, Alabama · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206B · all 206Bs on the register
- Registration
- N1285S · no longer on the register · serial 1061
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Ground crew support personnel observed the aerial spray helicopter lift off at about 1150 with the pilot and tree tract owner aboard for the purpose of defining the tract boundaries. Lift off appeared and sounded normal. Thirty minutes later, absent any contact or sight of the rotorcraft, the ground crew became concerned and started searching. At 1504, the wreckage was found by police helicopter search near the edge of a clearing. Postcrash examination of the crash site revealed the rotorcraft collided with two large trees before impact with the terrain about 60 feet into the clearing. Postcrash examination of the engine, drive-train, transmission, airframe, rotors, and flight controls revealed the engine was not producing power, precrash. Examination of the fuel system revealed the airframe fuel filter's wing-nut drain had been positioned and locked in the 'drain' position, and there was very little fuel aboard, either in the fuel cell or in the engine's fuel lines.
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, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all; 5,350 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,275 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 9, 1999; 188 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20B (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Centreville AL at 4:50 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 100° at 10 knots, gusting 14
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:53 pm from TCL, 24 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.