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Accidents · NTSB NYC91DNA01 · Final report

Bell 47-G3-B accident near Nantucket, Massachusetts, November 15, 1990

On November 15, 1990 at about 5:10 pm local time, a Bell 47-G3-B (helicopter), registered N2921W, was destroyed in an accident near Nantucket, Massachusetts. It was a positioning 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

A HARD LANDING, AFTER A POWER LOSS DUE TO IMPROPER USE OF THE CARBURETOR HEAT CONTROL BY THE PILOT.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
November 15, 1990 · about 5:10 pm local time · cases in 1990
Place
Nantucket, Massachusetts
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Bell 47-G3-B · all 47-G3-Bs on the register
Registration
N2921W · registry record · serial 6832
Damage
Destroyed
Flight
Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

THE PILOT WAS ON A POSITIONING FLIGHT AT 1000 FEET AGL WHEN HE EXPERIENCED A POWER LOSS DUE TO CARBURETOR ICE. HE AUTOROTATED INTO A LARGE OPEN AREA, MAKING A HARD LANDING. THE MAIN ROTOR STRUCK THE TAIL BOOM AND THERE WAS A SMALL POST CRASH FIRE FROM A RUPTURED HYDRAULIC LINE. THE ENGINE WAS TEST RUN SATISFACTORILY AFTER THE ACCIDENT.

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: single-engine land; rotorcraft: helicopter
  • Flight time: 4,500 hours in all; 2,500 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 4,400 as pilot in command; 6 on instruments
  • Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: left

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 5,797 hours
  • Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 19, 1990; 47 hours since
  • Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
  • Seats: 2
  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: Lycoming TVO-435-F1A (piston); 0 hours total
  • Fire on the ground
  • Operator: Firefly, INC.

The flight

  • Departed from: West Wareham MA at 4:40 pm
  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 0

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Wind: from 270° at 20 knots
  • Visibility: 10 statute miles
  • Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; clear
  • Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
  • Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
  • Observation at 5:25 pm from ACK, 2 miles away

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew1

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.

Connections how this case links to the rest of the register

Aircraft
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Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/NYC91DNA01.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.