Bell 206B accident near Mount Baldy, Idaho, February 23, 1986
On February 23, 1986 at about 7:15 pm local time, a Bell 206B (helicopter), registered N16800, was destroyed in an accident near Mount Baldy, Idaho. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured; 3 others were unhurt. 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
- February 23, 1986 · about 7:15 pm local time
- Place
- Mount Baldy, Idaho · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured; 3 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bell 206B · all 206Bs on the register
- Registration
- N16800 · no longer on the register · serial 2214
- 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
THE PILOT ALLOWED THE AIRCRAFT TO ENTER INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS. THE ARTIFICIAL HORIZON WAS INOPERATIVE AS WELL AS THE TURN PORTION OF THE TURN AND BANK. A TREE WAS STRUCK WITH THE AIRCRAFT THEN STRIKING THE GROUND.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 8,810 hours in all; 4,700 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 8,550 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,204 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 15, 1985; 41 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Allison 250-C2OB (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Mount Baldy ID at 8:15 pm
- Destination: Hailey ID
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 305° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 36°F (2°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.