Near Cooper?s Falls Helicopter Crash Near Cooper?s Falls News Centre
This pilot did a good job of a bad situation. I was called to fly a search for an "airplane down", and given a lat/long by dispatch. The loctaion is about a 15 minute flight north of my home. When I found the crashed helicopter, right where I was told to look, an occupant at the site gave me a good wave, and then lit a signal fire which he'd obviously prepared in advance. While monitoring 126.7, I heard an SAR helicopter on the way from Trenton Airbase, so I briefed him, and lead him into the site, while orbiting high. The helicopter which had crashed appeared to have autorotated into a good choice of a spot, and there were other suitable landing areas very close, one of which Trenton used. SAR techs were easily able to walk to the site. Otherwise ground access would have been really difficult, and probably not before sunset.
I don't know any details of the event of the crash, but the pilot obviously did a lot of things right in a bad situation. I suspected that someone had been injured, as the SAR helicopter flew right over my house after I had landed back at home. I presume he was on his way to hospital in Toronto, rather than home to Trenton.
But it all reminds me that we must be prepared when flying over remote areas, even just north east of Orillia 20 miles, it's rough out there. People think of it as "cottage" country, but if you're well off a road, it's remote. Help will come, but it'll be a search over/in rough terrain, rather than drive up to your 911 address! So make yourself easy to find, which this pilot did, and be prepared to spend a night if you can't be rescues as quickly as you'd hope.