Bell 407 N407SJ

Summary

On 13 June 2025 at about 14:40 local time, a Bell 407 registered N407SJ, operated by Limitless Society, Mark Keaton Hoskins, was involved in an accident near Bountiful, Utah, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 June 2025 at 14:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Bountiful, Utah, United States

Nearest airport

Skypark Airport (BTF)

Coordinates

40.8681, -111.9275

Aircraft

Bell 407

Registration

N407SJ

Category

Helicopter

Year built

2004

Engines

1

Operator

Limitless Society, Mark Keaton Hoskins

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Positioning

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bountiful → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR25LA173

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s improper decision to depart with inadequate clearance from a hangar door, resulting in the helicopter’s collision with the door.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, the helicopter was stored on a rolling dolly in a hangar. According to photographs provided by the pilot, when opened, the hangar door swings outward into the ramp area. When the pilot arrived at the hangar, he noticed another other hangar tenant had previously opened the hangar door and parked her car in the doorway. After the pilot rolled the dolly and helicopter into the ramp area, he asked the other tenant to move her car so he could close the hangar door, but she declined to do so. The pilot estimated he had adequate clearance from the end of the open hangar door and proceeded to start the helicopter and lift off the dolly. The helicopter had ascended a few feet from the dolly when the main rotor blades struck the edge of the hangar door. The helicopter immediately yawed right and impacted the surface of the ramp, resulting in substantial damage to the main rotor and tailboom. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.