Lifeteam Helicopter crashes

[justme]

If you dont know, all aircraft accidents are investigated by the faa, and all aircraft accidents involving ambulances are also investigated by the ntsb, they are the ones who make the final determination as to the cause of the incident.

The preliminary cause of this accident was loss of power from the engine causing the pilot to lose control and strike the power lines. This of course will need to be verified by the faa and ntsb.

The main thing I was saying that lowflight stated his opinion as fact and its not, its an opinion that as of his posting was not verified.

[Wildcat12]

This is what the Globe is saying as of current:

DodgeCity.com: Dodge Globe: Local News: Stories

What caused the rough landing, however, remains a mystery.

Johnson said investigators have bandied speculation back and forth, but no solid answers have emerged. That the wreck even occurred was strange, he said.

"It was essentially a brand-new helicopter," he said. "So, there's definitely some mystery as to what caused it."

Johnson said investigators are leaning toward mechanical failure as the cause. He said he was also confident the cause would be discovered because of the plethora of eyewitnesses and testimony from the crew.

Early speculation suggested that hard gusts of wind may have pushed the helicopter into power lines after it landed. Johnson said a subsequent investigation has shown that weather probably wasn't the problem.


I hope this helps.

[Tee]

It would seem to a layman, and I am just speculating here....that a trained pilot would not land where there was not an adequate cushion of space between himself and other obstacles, particularly power lines due to the hazard imposed; and, that the cushion would be exponentially expanded in windy conditions due to the propensity for danger from gusts. So to me it would seem that if a gust of wind caused him to go into a power line then still it was pilot error to some degree, unless of course mechanical failure was found to be the cause.

I would think that hitting power lines in a copter is somewhat like tailgating in a car; you can't blame it on slick roads or weather because the driver has the responsibility to know how long it would take him/her to safely stop in whatever condition they find them self in. All pilots are thoroughly trained in weather.

[SGT T.]

probably a good call tee. I've got friends that fly apache's and I know what a little wind can do.

[lurker]

It was suggested by a pilot that that particular intersection have its own helipad, due to the large number of crashes that occur there.

BTW, the landing zone is setup by the first responders.