Helio H-395 accident near Near St. Marks, Florida, August 17, 1982
On August 17, 1982 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Helio H-395, registered N4197D, was substantially damaged in an accident near Near St. Marks, Florida. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 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 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
- August 17, 1982 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Near St. Marks, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Helio H-395 · all H-395s on the register
- Registration
- N4197D · registry record · serial 571
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING FLIGHT, THE ENGINE BEGAN MISSING AND STARTED VIBRATING EXCESSIVELY. THE PILOT FORCE LANDED IN A SWAMP WITH SAWGRASS AND THE AIRCRAFT FLIPPED INVERTED. THE #3 EXHAUST PUSH ROD WAS MISSING AND WAS NOT FOUND, BUT DEBRIS FROM THE PUSH ROD SHROUD TUBE WAS FOUND INSIDE THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 3,950 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 28 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,304 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 6 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,000 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming GO-480 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Quincy FL at 1:20 pm
- Destination: Miami FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 225° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 12,000 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 1:50 pm from TLH, 34 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.
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 MIA82DA172.