Bell Helicopter Textron Inc 525 — registry & accident history
Compiled from FAA & NTSB records · as of Jul 25, 2026
There are 5 Bell Helicopter Textron Inc 525 airframes on record (built 2015–2019), 3 currently registered. 1 has one or more NTSB accident records (1 records total, 1 with a fatal highest-injury classification). Data as of Jul 25, 2026.
Recent Bell Helicopter Textron Inc 525 accidents
A severe vibration of the helicopter that led to the crew's inability to maintain sufficient rotor rotation speed (Nr), leading to excessive main rotor blade flapping, subsequent main rotor blade contact with the tail boom, and the resultant in-flight breakup. Contributing to the severity and sustainment of the vibration, which was not predicted during development, were (1) the collective biomechanical feedback and (2) the attitude and heading reference system response, both of which occurred due to the lack of protections in the flight control laws against the sustainment and growth of adverse feedback loops when the 6-hertz airframe vibration initiated. Contributing to the crew's inability to maintain sufficient Nr in the severe vibration environment were (1) the lack of an automated safeguard in the modified one-engine-inoperative software used during flight testing to exit at a critical Nr threshold and (2) the lack of distinct and unambiguous cues for low Nr.