Bell 47G-2 accident near Osage Beech, Missouri, May 15, 1982
On May 15, 1982 at about 2:25 pm local time, a Bell 47G-2 (helicopter), registered N208B, was destroyed in an accident near Osage Beech, Missouri. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 15, 1982 · about 2:25 pm local time
- Place
- Osage Beech, Missouri
- 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
- N208B · registry record · serial 27
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
SHORTLY AFTER THE HELICOPTER CLEARED THE HELIPAD THE PILOT NOTICED THAT ALTHOUGH HE HAD THE CYCLIC POSITIONED IN THE FULL FORWARD POSITION AGAINST THE STOP THE AIRSPEED WAS GRADUALLY DECAYING. THE PILOT THEN REMOVED HIS SEATBEAT AND MOVED FORWARD. ALONG WITH CONTINOUS CHANGES OF POWER THIS ENABLED THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN FLYING SPEED WITH A NOSEUP ATTITUDE. IN THE ATTEMPT TO LAND AT THE HELIPAD, WHICH WAS ADEQUATE FOR NORMAL OPERATIONS BUT NOT MEANT FOR EMERGENCY OPERATIONS, THE PILOT LOST CONTROL OF THE HELICOPTER AND EXECUTED A 180 DEGREE PEDAL TURN. HE THEN ATTEMPTED TO LAND IN A SMALL CLEAR AREA ACROSS A HIGHWAY FROM THE HELIPAD BUT FAILED TO CLEAR A GUARD RAIL WITH THE TAILROTOR. THE PILOT BOTTOMED THE COLLECTIVE AND DEPARTED THE AIRCRAFT DURING THE SECOND CONTACT WITH THE GROUND. THE HELICOPTER EXPLODED AND SLID DOWN AN EMBANKMENT.BOTH THE PILOT AND THE OPERATOR CONCUR THAT THIS ACCIDENT OCCURRED DUE TO AN AFT CENTER OF GRAVITY PROBLEM.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 5,459 hours in all; 881 in this make and model; 165 in the last 90 days; 5,261 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,103 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 7 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,450 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming VO-435-A1B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: East Bank CO.
The flight
- Departed from: Osage Beech MO at 9:20 am
- Destination: Osage Beech MO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 162°F (72°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.
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.