HEMS and NVGs...
Mars, thanks for posting the NTSB prelim. Helmet-fire, you're right on the money: why isn't the HEMS community leaning towards the use of NVGs? With over 500 hours of NVG time in some very demanding enviornments, I can honestly say that I don't like flying unaided. For some commercial ops, it's a non-issue. For HEMS, PD, and other ops that are conducted to field sites at night in low visibility, it seems like an unwise safety decision.
And there will be nay-sayers touting the limited field of view when using NVGs, etc, but the proof exists in the numbers. I'd be curious what the statistics are for accidents per 100,000 hours for operators using NVGs and those without. -even operators in similar mission modes (border patrol, PD, etc).
Not to mention, three sets of NVGs, initial and yearly training won't add up to more than the cost of that EC.