The South Carolina helicopter did not have night-vision equipment or a special system to warn the crew it was flying too close to obstacles or the ground, said Peter Knudson, spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board.
The helicopter also did not have autopilot, which would keep it level and on course even if the pilot became disoriented, Knudson said in response to questions from The Washington Post. The NTSB has urged medical helicopter programs to adopt each of those features, concluding their use could have prevented some previous accidents.
washingtonpost.com