AS355 down in New Jersey, USA

[OffshoreHeli-Mgr]

Sad news.

New Jersey helicopter crash kills 1 | Fox News (http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/09/15/new-jersey-helicopter-crash-kills-1/)

WEST WINDSOR, N.J. – Authorities say one person was killed when a helicopter crashed in central New Jersey.
The crash occurred shortly after noon Saturday in West Windsor, but it was not immediately clear what caused the accident. The victim, whose name was not immediately disclosed, is believed to have been the only person aboard the helicopter
Several witnesses reported hearing grinding noises and possible explosions shortly before the Aerospatiale AS355 twin-engine helicopter went down in a cornfield near Route 1 and Quakerbridge Road in the Mercer County community. Authorities say the helicopter burst into flames upon impact, but no one on the ground was injured.
Vehicle traffic in the area wasn't affected by the accident, but West Windsor police were asking drivers to stay away from the area while the investigation was ongoing.


Read more: New Jersey helicopter crash kills 1 | Fox News (http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/09/15/new-jersey-helicopter-crash-kills-1/#ixzz26ZqyZjDQ)

[MikeNYC]

The pilot was Mike Scarfia, retired NYPD, and the helicopter was N58020, a frequent aircraft in NYC. He was previously a pilot for Liberty Helicopters, where I rode with him as pax in the past. Saddened to hear of his passing.

[darrenphughes]

Mike was one of the best characters I've ever met. A real Italian type guy from Staten Island. The first time I met him, I made some smart-arsed comment about the gold chain hanging on his hairy chest visible due to the 3 open buttons on his shirt. He smirked, and moved on. I was left wondering if I was about to get "whacked" by the mob!! Every morning there was always the all important "real man's" handshake, followed by some good conversation or a jibe about something that happened the day before. He made a point about talking us little guys through the new experiences we were about to encounter so we'd be prepared for what was coming up, because he'd seen it all before. He knew every inch of New York City, Long Island, and most of the Northeast, and could always give a minimum safe altitude for a given operation in a given weather condition.

He was more conservative with weather than most in NYC. He always made a point to slow the new guys down from the usual Liberty rush. Even though he had the new guys do most of the work in the mornings, I remember him meeting me at the aircraft one morning as I was about to head into the city. He slowly talked me though what he considered a proper walk-around. It was much more thorough than what I had planned, but each point checked had a good reason and/or story behind why it was incorporated into his walk-around. A friend told me of his inflight habit in a dual GPS equipped aircraft of setting the nearest VOR frequency in standby during every part of a flight, even in clear blue skies, just in case.

Stories! They were his forte. Every situation had a story to go with it. From something that happened at a given landmark in NYC, to what they would do with warm chicken livers in Vietnam! If you shut your mouth long enough to let him speak, you'd always hear some tale from years gone by.

I'll always remember Scarfia as the good humored old cranky guy sitting on the tug, first thing in the morning with a massive cigar and smoke pouring out of his mouth while the snubnosed .38 permanently holstered to his ankle poked out of the bottom of his trousers.

Mike Scarfia, the man, the legend!

[Savoia]

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-FRTsBrspwow/UFbr0xmea5I/AAAAAAAAJqk/fkd9lot6e40/s903/N58020.jpg
N58020

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-S9w4AES0HWg/UFbr02zN9cI/AAAAAAAAJqo/zcBlgeUAexA/s635/copter16n-1-web.jpg
Post Accident

Witnesses say birds collided with helicopter that crashed in West Windsor, killed pilot | NJ.com (http://www.nj.com/mercer/index.ssf/2012/09/helicopter_crash_in_west_winds.html)