Small helicopter crashes on Motorway 6 Germany
 

Sad news at the beginning of this year.
A smal helicopter crashed, after contacting powerlines in rainy weather, on the motorway A6 near Schwaebisch Hall in Germany.
Contacted a lorry as well.
Sole oxcupant, the pilot, is belived dead.
http://www.rp-online.de/panorama/deutschland/pilot-stirbt-bei-hubschrauberabsturz-auf-a6-1.3130124

The wreckage looks like that of a plane.

Helicopter?
 

The picture shows what looks like an aeroplane .... ?
(with a crane in the background)

They obviously haven't got a picture of the actual accident so have put a picture of a plane crash on an autobahn under the heading of a Chronology of Helicopter and Aeroplane Accidents on Autobahns.
If you click through they list 5 other accidents dating back to 1983, one of which they had the picture for it seems.

Yes, it is a stock photo referring to the history of helicopter and aeroplane crashes on motorways.

Smal helicopter crashes on motorway 6 Germany
 

News say, motorway still blocked both direktions and that it could have been an R44 from a private owner (Company)

Here is a pic of the wreck:

Hubschrauber stürzt auf Autobahn in Baden-Württemberg - SPIEGEL ONLINE

skadi

Video
 

Hubschrauber stürzt auf A 6 und explodiert

six pics of the crashed helicopter. looks like a black r22 tailboom...

According to an official Police report the cause was in deed wire strike. Weather was rain/drizzle with poor vis and the crash happend a couple minutes before sunset!

Location: 49° 10,879 N 9° 45,429 E just 4nm N of Schwäbisch-Hall Airport

skadi

I feel a 'roundabout' thread coming on, lets get dizzy! :rolleyes:

There is a report now in a local paper that has the names of the pilot and of the owner of the helicopter (rather unusual in Germany to publish names, but obviously both are well known persons in their town).
According to this report, the helicopter was a Robinson 44 being ferried back to its home base (EDTY) from maintenance done at EDMA. Final cause of the crash was indeed a collision with power lines. Why the helicopter was flying so low is not known. Contrary to his usual practice the pilot had not maintained radio contact with flight information service on this flight. All that is known is that he had delayed his departure from EDMA due to bad weather (communicated using his iPad because he had left his cellphone in the car).

This is the newspaper article (german language) from "Heibronner Stimme":
Verunglückter Pilot ist 42-jähriger Bretzfelder - STIMME.de

Not every part of the R44 was burned, the T/R section was found a couple of meters away from the main wreck ( in the background ) :

Bildergalerien | Südwest Presse Online

skadi

10-Jan-13 D-HIZZ Robinson R44 Schwäbisch Hall, Germany (1F) | Helihub - the Helicopter Industry Data Source

ASN Aircraft accident 10-JAN-2013 Robinson R44 Astro D-HIZZ

D-HIZZ R44 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!