Direct Answer — NTSB Part 830 in Brief
49 CFR Part 830 is the NTSB rule on notifying the Board of aircraft accidents and incidents, preserving wreckage and records, and filing a written report. Under §830.5, the operator must notify the nearest NTSB office immediately, by the most expeditious means available, after an accident or any of the serious incidents listed in §830.5(a)(1)–(a)(12); §830.5(b) adds the overdue-and-believed-involved-in-an-accident case. §830.2 sets the thresholds: an accident requires death, serious injury, or substantial damage; serious injury and substantial damage each have precise definitions and exclusions. §830.6 lists the information the notification must contain. §830.10 makes the operator responsible for preserving wreckage, cargo, mail, and all flight, maintenance, and voice-recorder records until the NTSB takes custody. Finally, §830.15 requires a written report on NTSB Form 6120.1/2 within 10 days after an accident (7 days if an aircraft is overdue and still missing); a report on a §830.5(a) incident is filed only when the NTSB requests it. Every one of these steps generates records you must be able to produce later.
Part 830 is an NTSB rule, not an FAA rule — and the two recordkeeping worlds do not overlap
Part 830 lives in 49 CFR Chapter VIII (NTSB), and §830.5 directs notification to the NTSB. It does not replace your 14 CFR airworthiness and maintenance records. After an accident you will be running an NTSB reporting track and an FAA airworthiness/return-to-service records track at the same time — and an inspector or investigator can ask for either.
The Definitions That Decide Everything — §830.2
Whether you have a reportable event turns entirely on the definitions in 49 CFR §830.2. Get these wrong and you either over-report a non-event or — far worse — fail to notify the NTSB of a genuine accident. Each definition below is paraphrased from §830.2; verify the exact text against the regulation for any real determination.
Aircraft accident
An occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft that takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight and the time all such persons have disembarked, and in which any person suffers death or serious injury, or in which the aircraft receives substantial damage. All three trigger conditions — death, serious injury, or substantial damage — turn an occurrence into an "accident."
Incident
An occurrence other than an accident, associated with the operation of an aircraft, that affects or could affect the safety of operations. The definition is broad, but the reporting duty is narrow: only the specific serious incidents listed in §830.5(a) require immediate notification, and a written report on one of those incidents is filed only when the NTSB requests it.
Operator
Any person who causes or authorizes the operation of an aircraft, such as the owner, lessee, or bailee of an aircraft. This is the party on whom Part 830 places the notification, preservation, and reporting duties — which is why establishing who held operational control at the time of an occurrence matters on leased, managed, and fractional aircraft.
Any injury that meets at least one of these:
- Requires hospitalization for more than 48 hours, commencing within 7 days from the date the injury was received
- Results in a fracture of any bone (except simple fractures of fingers, toes, or nose)
- Causes severe hemorrhages, nerve, muscle, or tendon damage
- Involves any internal organ
- Involves second- or third-degree burns, or any burns affecting more than 5 percent of the body surface
A “fatal injury” is separately defined in §830.2 as any injury that results in death within 30 days of the accident.
Damage or failure that adversely affects the structural strength, performance, or flight characteristics of the aircraft, and that would normally require major repair or replacement of the affected component.
The §830.2 definition expressly excludes (not, by themselves, substantial damage):
- ×Engine failure or damage limited to an engine
- ×Bent fairings or cowling; dented skin
- ×Small punctured holes in the skin or fabric
- ×Ground damage to rotor or propeller blades
- ×Damage to landing gear, wheels, tires, flaps, engine accessories, brakes, or wingtips
Because the operator carries these duties, knowing who that operator is matters. For charter and managed flights, see what operational control means under Part 135 and the records that establish it — the same lease and flight-release documents that answer “who was the operator?” after an occurrence. Fractional programs have their own wrinkle; see Part 91K fractional ownership compliance records.
Immediate Notification — §830.5
49 CFR §830.5 requires the operator of any civil aircraft — or a public aircraft not operated by the Armed Forces or an intelligence agency of the United States, or any foreign aircraft — to immediately, and by the most expeditious means available, notify the nearest NTSB office when an accident or one of the listed incidents occurs. The §830.5(a) list of serious incidents runs from (a)(1) through (a)(12):
- (a)(1)Flight control system malfunction or failure
- (a)(2)Inability of any required flight crewmember to perform normal flight duties as a result of injury or illness
- (a)(3)Failure of any internal turbine engine component that results in the escape of debris other than out the exhaust path
- (a)(4)In-flight fire
- (a)(5)Aircraft collision in flight
- (a)(6)Damage to property, other than the aircraft, estimated to exceed $25,000 for repair (including materials and labor) or fair market value in the event of total loss, whichever is less
- (a)(7)For large multiengine aircraft (more than 12,500 pounds maximum certificated takeoff weight): specified in-flight failures of electrical and hydraulic systems, sustained loss of the power or thrust of two or more engines, and an evacuation in which an emergency egress system is used (four sub-items, (i)–(iv))
- (a)(8)Release of all or a portion of a propeller blade from an aircraft, excluding release caused solely by ground contact
- (a)(9)A complete loss of information, excluding flickering, from more than 50 percent of an aircraft's cockpit displays (EFIS, EICAS, ECAM, or other displays of this type)
- (a)(10)Airborne Collision and Avoidance System (ACAS) resolution advisories issued when an aircraft is being operated on an IFR flight plan and compliance with the advisory is necessary to avert a substantial risk of collision between two or more aircraft
- (a)(11)Damage to helicopter tail or main rotor blades, including ground damage, that requires major repair or replacement of the blade(s)
- (a)(12)For an aircraft operated by an air carrier: a runway incursion that requires the operator or the crew of another aircraft or vehicle to take immediate corrective action to avoid a collision
“Immediately” means immediately — and the standard is the nearest NTSB office
Section 830.5 does not give a clock in hours; it requires notification immediately and by the most expeditious means available. The list above is paraphrased for readability — for any real determination, read the exact text of each sub-item, because items such as (a)(7) carry weight thresholds and specific sub-conditions that govern whether the duty is triggered.
Some events on this list will simultaneously be FAA service difficulty reports and may intersect with flight-locating and flight-release records (relevant to the overdue-aircraft case in §830.5(b)). The NTSB notification and the FAA reports are distinct filings with distinct recipients — do not assume one discharges the other.
What the Notification Must Contain — §830.6
49 CFR §830.6 specifies the information the §830.5 notification must contain, to the extent it is available. The items are lettered (a) through (i). Having these facts assembled — type and registration, who was aboard, where the aircraft is — is far easier when the underlying aircraft documents are organized before an occurrence, not reconstructed during one.
| Item | Information to be given (paraphrased from §830.6) |
|---|---|
| (a) | Type, nationality, and registration marks of the aircraft |
| (b) | Name of owner, and operator, of the aircraft |
| (c) | Name of the pilot-in-command |
| (d) | Date and time of the accident |
| (e) | Last point of departure and point of intended landing of the aircraft |
| (f) | Position of the aircraft with reference to some easily defined geographical point |
| (g) | Number of persons aboard, number killed, and number seriously injured |
| (h) | Nature of the accident, the weather, and the extent of damage to the aircraft, so far as is known |
| (i) | A description of any explosives, radioactive materials, or other dangerous articles carried |
Notice how many of these items map to documents you should already hold: registration and type from your ARROW documents, the dangerous-articles question from your hazmat / will-not-carry records, and the pilot-in-command and persons-aboard facts from your flight-release and flight-locating records. The notification is faster and more accurate when those records are indexed and retrievable.
Related Aviation Compliance Guides
Preserving Wreckage, Mail, Cargo, and Records — §830.10
49 CFR §830.10 is the part most operators under-appreciate, because it reaches your records, not just the physical wreckage. It has four paragraphs.
Preservation duty — wreckage AND records
The operator is responsible for preserving, to the extent possible, any aircraft wreckage, cargo, and mail aboard the aircraft, and all records — including all recording mediums of flight, maintenance, and voice recorders — pertaining to the operation and maintenance of the aircraft and to the airmen, until the NTSB takes custody or a release is granted under 49 CFR §831.12(b). "All records" is sweeping: it captures the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder, the maintenance logbooks, and the airman records.
Do not disturb the wreckage — three narrow exceptions
Prior to the time the Board or its authorized representative takes custody, the wreckage, mail, or cargo may not be disturbed or moved except to the extent necessary: (1) to remove persons injured or trapped; (2) to protect the wreckage from further damage; or (3) to protect the public from injury. Outside those three purposes, the scene is left as it is.
If you must move it — document the original state
Where it is necessary to move aircraft wreckage, mail, or cargo for one of the permitted purposes, sketches, descriptive notes, and photographs shall be made, if possible, of the original positions and condition of the wreckage and any significant impact marks. Those sketches, notes, and photographs become part of the record set you must preserve.
Retain everything about the occurrence until released
The operator must retain all records, reports, internal documents, and memoranda dealing with the accident or incident, until authorized by the Board to the contrary. This is a litigation-hold-style duty: it sweeps in internal emails and memos about the occurrence, not just the formal aircraft logbooks.
The records duty in §830.10 is exactly where document organization pays off
When the obligation is to preserve “all records…pertaining to the operation and maintenance of the aircraft and to the airmen,” an operator whose records are scattered across email, a shop work-order system, and a filing cabinet is at risk of an inadvertent gap. The duty runs until the NTSB takes custody or releases the records under §831.12(b) — you do not get to decide unilaterally when it ends.
The maintenance and airman records swept in by §830.10 are the same records governed day-to-day by other rules — see §43.9 maintenance entry requirements, Part 91 aircraft records requirements, and, for Part 135 certificate holders, the full Part 135 records list and Part 135 pilot records.
The Written Report — §830.15 and NTSB Form 6120.1/2
49 CFR §830.15 is the separate, written reporting obligation — distinct from the immediate notification under §830.5.
The operator of a civil, public, or foreign aircraft files a report on NTSB Form 6120.1/2 within 10 days after an accident.
When an aircraft is overdue and still missing, the report is filed after 7 days.
A report on an incident for which immediate notification is required under §830.5(a) is filed only as requested by an authorized representative of the NTSB.
Crewmember statements and where to file
Under §830.15(b), each crewmember, if physically able at the time the report is submitted, attaches a statement setting forth the facts, conditions, and circumstances relating to the accident or incident; a crewmember who is incapacitated submits the statement as soon as physically able. Under §830.15(c), the operator files the report with the NTSB field office nearest the accident or incident.
The 10-day report and the immediate notification are two separate filings. Filing Form 6120.1/2 on day 9 does not cure a missed immediate notification, and an immediate phone notification does not discharge the written-report duty.
Assembling Form 6120.1/2 accurately within 10 days is a documentation exercise: you are pulling together the aircraft, crew, flight, and damage facts. The same crew-qualification and currency records that prove who was legally flying — see Part 135 flight-time, duty, and rest records and medical certificate tracking — feed straight into the report and into any follow-on inquiry.
The Records Part 830 Generates — and Where They Sit Next to FAA Records
Part 830 is usually taught as an emergency procedure. For a records-focused operator it is also a record-generating event: a single accident produces an NTSB notification log, a Form 6120.1/2, crewmember statements, preserved recorder media, scene sketches and photographs, and a litigation-hold set of internal documents — all of which must be retained under §830.10(d) until the Board says otherwise. Those NTSB records sit alongside, but never replace, the FAA airworthiness and maintenance records you keep under Title 14.
| Record | Source rule | Why it has to survive |
|---|---|---|
| Immediate-notification record (who/when/what was reported to the NTSB) | 49 CFR §830.5 / §830.6 | Evidence the immediate-notification duty was met, and what facts were given |
| NTSB Form 6120.1/2 written report | 49 CFR §830.15(a) | The required 10-day accident report (7 days if overdue) |
| Crewmember statements | 49 CFR §830.15(b) | Required attachment to the report; first-hand account of the occurrence |
| Preserved flight, maintenance & voice-recorder media | 49 CFR §830.10(a) | Must be preserved until NTSB custody or §831.12(b) release |
| Scene sketches, descriptive notes, photographs | 49 CFR §830.10(c) | Required if wreckage is moved for a permitted purpose |
| Internal documents and memoranda about the occurrence | 49 CFR §830.10(d) | Retain until authorized by the Board to the contrary |
| Maintenance / return-to-service entries for repairs | 14 CFR §43.9 / §91.417 | FAA airworthiness chain — separate from, and not replaced by, the NTSB report |
| Post-accident drug & alcohol testing records | 14 CFR Part 120 / 49 CFR Part 40 (retention §40.333) | Often triggered by the same event; separate testing and chain-of-custody records |
FileFlo as the Part 830 Records Layer
FileFlo is a compliance document intelligence platform — a read-only proof layer for your records. It does not notify the NTSB for you, run your safety program, or manage an accident response; those are operational duties that belong to you and to qualified counsel. What FileFlo does is keep the document set Part 830 touches — and the FAA records sitting next to it — classified, indexed, and instantly retrievable, before and after an occurrence.
- Classifies and indexes the aircraft, crew, and flight records §830.6 asks for — registration/type, PIC, persons aboard, dangerous-articles status — so the notification facts are at hand
- Keeps the maintenance, airman, and recorder-related records named in §830.10(a) organized so the preservation duty does not have inadvertent gaps
- Holds the completed NTSB Form 6120.1/2, crewmember statements, and scene documentation in one place with version history
- Surfaces the parallel FAA records — §43.9 entries, Form 337s, §91.417 status — that prove the airworthy return to service after a repair
- Generates an inspector- or investigator-ready records index on demand, so "produce the records" is a button, not a scramble
FileFlo classifies 600+ document types and manages records across Part 91, Part 135, and Part 145 operators. Pricing: Starter $89/mo, Professional $299/mo. 5-day free trial, no credit card required. FileFlo keeps the documents that prove compliance audit-ready — it is not an SMS, a dispatch/flight-operations system, or an accident-response service.
After the Report: Surveillance, Records Requests, and the Long Tail
An accident or serious incident rarely ends with the 10-day report. It frequently draws FAA attention to the operator’s records as a whole — and a §830.10(d) retention duty that runs until the Board releases you means the document set has to stay intact for a long time. For Part 135 certificate holders this is exactly the moment the operator’s broader recordkeeping is tested.
If you operate under Part 135, prepare for the records side now — see how to prepare for a Part 135 FAA surveillance audit and the training program recordkeeping requirements that surveillance routinely examines. Maintenance-program operators should also confirm their CAMP maintenance recordkeeping is complete, since a damaged aircraft’s repair and return-to-service chain will be scrutinized alongside the Part 830 file.
Post-accident testing deserves its own attention because it runs on a separate clock and a separate retention rule — review the Part 135 drug and alcohol program records checklist so the testing documentation is defensible if the occurrence met the post-accident testing criteria. Repair-station work generated by the damage is covered in the Part 145 repair station recordkeeping requirements and the FAA Form 337 major repair and alteration records.
Frequently Asked Questions
When must an operator immediately notify the NTSB under Part 830?
Under 49 CFR §830.5, the operator of any civil aircraft (or a public aircraft not operated by the Armed Forces or an intelligence agency, or a foreign aircraft) must notify the nearest NTSB office immediately, and by the most expeditious means available, after an aircraft accident or any of the listed serious incidents occurs. The §830.5(a) incident list runs from (a)(1) through (a)(12) and includes a flight control system malfunction or failure; the inability of any required flight crewmember to perform normal flight duties as a result of injury or illness; failure of an internal turbine engine component that results in the escape of debris other than out the exhaust path; in-flight fire; aircraft collision in flight; damage to property other than the aircraft estimated to exceed $25,000; specified failures on large multiengine aircraft over 12,500 pounds; release of all or a portion of a propeller blade; a complete loss of information from more than 50 percent of an aircraft's cockpit displays; certain ACAS resolution advisories on an IFR flight plan; damage to helicopter tail or main rotor blades requiring major repair or replacement; and an air-carrier runway incursion requiring immediate corrective action. Separately, §830.5(b) requires notification when an aircraft is overdue and is believed to have been involved in an accident.
What is the difference between an "accident" and an "incident" under 49 CFR §830.2?
Section 830.2 defines an aircraft accident as an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft that takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight and the time all such persons have disembarked, and in which any person suffers death or serious injury, or in which the aircraft receives substantial damage. An incident is defined more broadly as an occurrence other than an accident, associated with the operation of an aircraft, that affects or could affect the safety of operations. The distinction drives the reporting obligation: an accident always triggers immediate notification under §830.5 and a written report under §830.15, while only the specific serious incidents enumerated in §830.5(a) require immediate notification — and a written report on one of those incidents is filed only when the NTSB requests it.
How does 49 CFR §830.2 define "serious injury" and "substantial damage"?
Section 830.2 defines a serious injury as any injury that: (1) requires hospitalization for more than 48 hours, commencing within 7 days from the date the injury was received; (2) results in a fracture of any bone (except simple fractures of fingers, toes, or nose); (3) causes severe hemorrhages, nerve, muscle, or tendon damage; (4) involves any internal organ; or (5) involves second- or third-degree burns, or any burns affecting more than 5 percent of the body surface. Substantial damage is defined as damage or failure that adversely affects the structural strength, performance, or flight characteristics of the aircraft, and that would normally require major repair or replacement of the affected component. The same definition expressly excludes a list of items — including engine failure or damage limited to an engine, bent fairings or cowling, dented skin, small punctured holes in the skin or fabric, ground damage to rotor or propeller blades, and damage to landing gear, wheels, tires, flaps, engine accessories, brakes, or wingtips — none of which, by themselves, count as substantial damage.
How long does an operator have to file the written NTSB report, and on what form?
Under 49 CFR §830.15(a), the operator of a civil, public, or foreign aircraft files a report on NTSB Form 6120.1/2 within 10 days after an accident. When an aircraft is overdue and still missing, the report is filed after 7 days. For an incident for which immediate notification is required under §830.5(a), a written report is filed only as requested by an authorized representative of the NTSB. Section 830.15(c) directs the operator to file the report with the NTSB field office nearest the accident or incident. This 10-day written report is a separate obligation from the immediate telephone-type notification under §830.5 — the immediate notification does not satisfy the written-report requirement, and vice versa.
What records and wreckage must be preserved after an accident under 49 CFR §830.10?
Section 830.10(a) makes the operator responsible for preserving, to the extent possible, any aircraft wreckage, cargo, and mail aboard the aircraft, and all records — including all recording mediums of flight, maintenance, and voice recorders — pertaining to the operation and maintenance of the aircraft and to the airmen, until the NTSB takes custody or a release is granted under §831.12(b). Under §830.10(b), before the Board or its authorized representative takes custody, the wreckage, mail, or cargo may not be disturbed or moved except to the extent necessary to remove persons injured or trapped, to protect the wreckage from further damage, or to protect the public from injury. Where it is necessary to move wreckage, mail, or cargo, §830.10(c) requires that sketches, descriptive notes, and photographs be made, if possible, of the original positions and condition of the wreckage and any significant impact marks. And §830.10(d) requires the operator to retain all records, reports, internal documents, and memoranda dealing with the accident or incident until authorized by the Board to the contrary.
Does Part 830 require an operator to notify the FAA, and does an NTSB report replace FAA recordkeeping?
No. Part 830 is an NTSB regulation (49 CFR Chapter VIII), and §830.5 directs notification to the nearest NTSB office — not the FAA. In practice the FAA learns of most accidents through ATC, flight service, or law enforcement, and operators frequently coordinate with their FSDO, but the §830.5 legal duty runs to the NTSB. An NTSB accident report on Form 6120.1/2 is also entirely separate from the operator's ongoing FAA recordkeeping obligations: a damaged or repaired aircraft still generates 14 CFR §43.9 maintenance entries, FAA Form 337 major repair records, and the §91.417 maintenance-record retention chain. The NTSB report documents the occurrence; the FAA records document the airworthiness and the return to service. An operator that files a flawless NTSB report but cannot later produce the maintenance and airworthiness records proving the aircraft was correctly repaired has solved only half the problem.
Who counts as the "operator" responsible for Part 830 reporting?
Section 830.2 defines operator as any person who causes or authorizes the operation of an aircraft, such as the owner, lessee, or bailee of an aircraft. For a Part 135 charter, the certificate holder exercising operational control is ordinarily the operator for Part 830 purposes — which is why operational control documentation matters when an occurrence happens on a leased or managed aircraft. For a dry-leased Part 91 aircraft, the lessee operating the aircraft is typically the operator. Pinning down who held operational control at the time of the occurrence is a recurring question after accidents on managed and fractional aircraft, and it is answered from the lease, management agreement, and flight-release records — the same documents an FAA inspector reviews to confirm who was responsible for the flight.
What is the relationship between Part 830 notification and post-accident drug and alcohol testing?
They are triggered by different rules but often by the same event. Part 830 governs notification to the NTSB and preservation of wreckage and records. Post-accident drug and alcohol testing of covered aviation employees is governed by the FAA testing rules in 14 CFR Part 120, with the testing-program procedures in 49 CFR Part 40; the records-retention period for those testing records is set by 49 CFR §40.333. An accident that requires immediate NTSB notification under §830.5 will frequently also meet the post-accident testing criteria under Part 120, so the operator is simultaneously notifying the NTSB, preserving records under §830.10, and initiating the testing and chain-of-custody documentation that the testing rules require. Treating these as one coordinated records event — rather than three disconnected tasks under pressure — is what keeps the documentation defensible afterward.
When an occurrence happens, the records duty starts immediately. Be ready before it does.
FileFlo classifies and indexes the aircraft, crew, flight, maintenance, and airman records that Part 830 reaches, keeps your completed NTSB Form 6120.1/2 and supporting documentation organized with version history, and surfaces the parallel FAA airworthiness records on demand. Starter plan $89/mo. Professional $299/mo. 5-day free trial — no credit card required.
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Also related: Aviation Compliance Hub · Part 135 Records List · AD Compliance Records · Surveillance Audit Prep
Written by Chad Griffith, Founder, FileFlo — compliance document intelligence. Reviewed June 11, 2026. FileFlo is a compliance document management platform, not legal counsel, the NTSB, or an accident-investigation authority. In any actual accident or incident, contact the NTSB and qualified aviation counsel before acting on reporting or wreckage-handling decisions; verify every Part 830 threshold and deadline against the current regulation.