From the Daily Mail
Airfield worker seriously injured after blade snaps off helicopter during take-off crash | Mail Online
Airfield worker seriously injured after blade snaps off helicopter during take-off crash
By
Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 7:29 PM on 28th May 2009
An airfield worker was badly injured by a helicopter blade today after it flew off a chopper when it crashed on take-off.
The 18-year-old man suffered serious leg injuries and had to undergo emergency surgery after the accident at Goodwood aerodrome, in West Sussex.
The man, who was a contractor at the site, was working in a hangar close to the aerodrome's helipad when the crash happened.
An airfield worker suffered severe leg injuries after a helicopter blade flew off a helicopter when it crashed on take-off at Goodwood aerodrome, West Sussex
As the helicopter took off, one of the blades clipped the ground and flew off, catching the man on his leg.
Emergency services were called to the venue, famous for hosting motorsport and horse-racing events, where they found the man in agony.
The air ambulance was also called but paramedics took him to St Richard's Hospital, in nearby Chichester by ambulance.
The 61-year-old pilot of the Robinson R44 Clipper II helicopter, who was the only person onboard, was unhurt in the incident.
It is the second time this week the emergency services have been called to the ground.
On Monday, five people, including a three-year-old girl and three elderly race-goers, were injured when a runaway Jeep Cherokee hit them as they picnicked in a car park.
The 4x4, one of the course's official vehicles, reversed through a fence, plunged down an embankment, wrecked another fence and hit three cars before smashing into the group.
Aerodrome spokesman Gary Axon said: 'At around 12.12pm today, a helicopter incident occurred at the Goodwood aerodrome.
'A helicopter crashed on take-off with a sole occupant on board.
'A contractor working near the helipad received a leg wound from some flying debris from the helicopter and was taken to hospital where he is under observation but stable.
'It appears a blade came down at a slight angle and hit the hard standing base which is concrete and ricocheted off.
'The pilot is a little bit shaken but unhurt.'
A spokeswoman for Sussex police confirmed that they had attended the aerodrome but said that they were not investigating