Bell 206L-1 accident near Mansfield, Missouri, November 1, 1985
On November 1, 1985, a Bell 206L-1 (helicopter), registered N27689, was destroyed in an accident near Mansfield, Missouri. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed, 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. 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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 1, 1985
- Place
- Mansfield, Missouri · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed, 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206L-1 · all 206L-1s on the register
- Registration
- N27689 · no longer on the register · serial 45289
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER DEPARTING WEST PLAINS HOSPITAL FOR SPRINGFIELD, TRANSFERRING A CRITICALLY INJURED PATIENT, THE PLT OF THE EMS HELICOPTER BEGAN TO ENCOUNTER DETERIORATING WEATHER. THE PLT WAS CONCERNED ABOUT THE CLOSE SPREAD OF TEMPERATURE AND DEW POINT, BUT HAD ADEQUATE CEILINGS AND VISIBILITIES ALONG HIS ROUTE OF FLT TO CONTINUE. AFTER CRESTING A HILL WEST OF MANSFIELD, MISSOURI, ALONG MISSOURI HWY 60, THE PLT ENCOUNTERED LOWERING CEILINGS AND LIGHT FOG. THE PLT STATED HE DID NOT LIKE THE CONDITION OF THE WEATHER AFTER PASSING THE HILL AND INITIATED A RIGHT TURN TO PROCEED BACK TO MANSFIELD. POWER LINES WERE IMPACTED BY THE HELICOPTER IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE PLT INITIATED THE TURN. THE PLT DID NOT REALIZE THAT HE HAD DESCENDED LOW ENOUGH TO STRIKE THE POWER LINES THAT WERE OBSCURED IN FOG AND LOW CLOUDS.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 7,377 hours in all; 1,836 in this make and model; 131 in the last 90 days; 81 in the last 30 days; 7,105 as pilot in command; 1,855 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,929 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 17, 1985; 76 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,050 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250C-28 (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: H63 West Plains MO at 11:10 pm
- Destination: SPF Springfield MO
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 340° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 400 ft; not recorded at 400 ft
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:48 pm from SPF, 32 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.