Heliport
2nd Apr 2004, 16:50
Las Vegas Review-Journal report
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Rotor blade failure was blamed in the 2002 crash of a medical helicopter that killed three Nevada crew members near Nipton, Calif., the National Transportation Safety Board said.
In findings released Tuesday, the NTSB listed the probable cause of the Sept. 7, 2002, crash of the Mercy Air helicopter as main rotor blade separation, and called darkness a factor.
The final report said crash and fire damage kept investigators from determining why the rotor blade of the Bell 222 helicopter came apart. It said paint chips and rotor parts were found 900 feet from the crash site.
Killed were the pilot, Marshall Butler, 46, nurse Ana Coburn, 30, and paramedic Kalaya Jarbsunthie, 31.
They were based in Pahrump, 60 miles west of Las Vegas, and were flying to a predawn crash in Baker, Calif., when the helicopter crashed and burned about 100 yards off Interstate 15 near Nipton, Calif.
The victims' families have filed a lawsuit in California against International Aviation Composites, the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, company that did maintenance work on the blades.
A company official did not immediately respond Thursday to a request for comment.
Leroy Jackson, risk manager for Denver-based Air Methods, Mercy Air parent company, said his company was still investigating the crash.
"We are saddened by the loss of our crew, but we are encouraged that the cause has not been attributed to them," he said.
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Rotor blade failure was blamed in the 2002 crash of a medical helicopter that killed three Nevada crew members near Nipton, Calif., the National Transportation Safety Board said.
In findings released Tuesday, the NTSB listed the probable cause of the Sept. 7, 2002, crash of the Mercy Air helicopter as main rotor blade separation, and called darkness a factor.
The final report said crash and fire damage kept investigators from determining why the rotor blade of the Bell 222 helicopter came apart. It said paint chips and rotor parts were found 900 feet from the crash site.
Killed were the pilot, Marshall Butler, 46, nurse Ana Coburn, 30, and paramedic Kalaya Jarbsunthie, 31.
They were based in Pahrump, 60 miles west of Las Vegas, and were flying to a predawn crash in Baker, Calif., when the helicopter crashed and burned about 100 yards off Interstate 15 near Nipton, Calif.
The victims' families have filed a lawsuit in California against International Aviation Composites, the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, company that did maintenance work on the blades.
A company official did not immediately respond Thursday to a request for comment.
Leroy Jackson, risk manager for Denver-based Air Methods, Mercy Air parent company, said his company was still investigating the crash.
"We are saddened by the loss of our crew, but we are encouraged that the cause has not been attributed to them," he said.