MSP Chopper crash

[Mark]

This is shocking news to read this morning..

September 28, 2008


4 killed in Md. medevac helicopter crash

Four people were killed early today when a Maryland State Police medevac helicopter crashed in Forestville, Md.

The victim's in the Prince Georges County crash included the state police pilot and flight paramedic, a fire/rescue medical provider and a patient, officials said. A second patient survived and was taken to Prince Georges Hospital Center.

Officials said the helicopter had been dispatched to a traffic accident in Waldorf, Md., about 11 p.m. Saturday from its hangar at Andrews Air Force Base.
The helicopter picked up two female patients and a medical provider from the rescue squad and was en route to Prince George's Hospital Center when it disappeared from radar.
Officials lost radio contact with the craft, known as Trooper 2, around 12:30 a.m. as it was headed to the base, according to a press release from the Maryland State Police. The crew had radioed in that it needed to land due to weather conditions.

Searchers found the crash site about 2 a.m. in a wooded area in Walker Mill Regional Park. The four victims were pronounced dead at the scene.

Officials are trying to determine the cause of the crash. Col. Terrence Sheridan, superintendent of Maryland State Police, is on the scene along with investigators from state police, the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration.

 

[ScanManQSL]

Tragic news, my thoughts are with them, their families, and departments....


Here are some facts about MSP Trooper 2.

Current Registered Aircraft

Aircraft (FAA)
Manufacturer: Aerospatiale
Model: SA365N-1 DAUPHIN Search all Aerospatiale SA365N-1 DAUPHIN
Year built: 1990
Serial Number (C/N): 6352
Mode S Code: 52533303
Aircraft Type: Rotorcraft
Amateur-Built: No
Number of Seats: 14
Number of Engines: 2
Engine Type: Turbo-shaft
Engine Manufacturer and Model: Turbomeca ARRIEL 2C

Owner (FAA)
Registration Type: Government
Owner: Maryland State Police
Address: Baltimore, MD 21220
United States
Region: Eastern

Status (FAA)
Certification Class: Standard
Certification Issued: 1990-09-25
Air Worthiness Test: 2002-04-18
Last Action Taken: 2005-09-20
Current Status: Valid

http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/N79MD.html

 

[suzukirider]

Very sad news and i hope the survivor makes it.

abe

 

[Mark]

Photo I took of a Trooper 2 at Andrews airshow back in May..
Sad day indeed for all involved.

Mark

 

[APXguru1]

MSP has over 20 medevac helicopters. They have removable numbers for where they go in service i.e trooper 2,4,6 ect.

 

[ReCall]

I was sitting here a little while ago when Charles County broadcast on the fire band their notification of the loss of Trooper 2. I almost fell out of my chair.

I cannot tell you the deep respect and admiration that I hold for the men and women of the MSP helicopter services (Trooper 2 & 7).

I am going to wait a bit and call the barracks to express my deepest condolences and ask if there is anything I can do and I'd like to encourage each of you to do the same, I'll also be calling over to Trooper 7's hangar. This is a very close knit family of truly dedicated individuals.

I'm sorry to say I did not get the information on the Charles County medical tech that lost their life. I believe they said Company 1 but I am not sure. If anyone can help me with this I would appreciate it. I'd like to send my condolences there as well.

ReCall

 

[ScanManQSL]

This is from the Associated Press @ 11:40 AM EDT.



Sept 28, 11:40 AM EDT

Medical helicopter crashes in Md. park, killing 4

By NAFEESA SYEED


DISTRICT HEIGHTS, Md. (AP) -- A medical helicopter carrying victims of a traffic accident crashed in a suburban Washington park early Sunday after reporting bad weather, killing four of the five people aboard, authorities said.

It was the deadliest medevac helicopter accident in Maryland since the State Police began flying those missions nearly 40 years ago.

A veteran pilot, a flight paramedic, a county emergency medical technician and one of the traffic accident victims died in the crash, authorities said.

An 18-year-old woman also injured in the traffic accident survived. She was in critical condition at a hospital.

"This is a devastating tragedy for the families of all the victims," State Police Superintendent Terrence Sheridan said.

Killed in the crash were pilot Stephen Bunker, 59; flight paramedic Mickey Lippy, 34; emergency medical technician Tanya Mallard, 39; and 18-year-old Ashley Youngler.

Bunker retired from the State Police after 26 years and had been a civilian pilot for the unit since 1989. Lippy had been with the State Police for four years.

Youngler and Jordan Wells, both of Charles County, were involved in the traffic accident.

It was foggy and rainy in the area about the time of the crash. The helicopter was headed on a roughly 25-mile trip from the traffic accident north to the hospital when the crew radioed just before midnight Saturday that they wanted to land at their hangar at Andrews Air Force Base because of bad weather. Ambulances were sent to the base, which is about halfway between the accident site and Prince George's county hospital, but the helicopter never arrived.

The medevac disappeared from radar and officials lost radio contact. Two hours later, a police officer found the wreckage on a trail in a wooded area of Walker Mill Regional Park, about seven miles north of the base.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration were investigating.

The last fatal medevac crash for the Maryland State Police Aviation Command was in 1986 when a helicopter went down in fog in West Baltimore, killing two troopers who had just transported a shooting victim to a hospital.

The unit had two other fatal helicopter crashes in the 1970s. It began medevac missions in 1970 and has since transported over 120,000 patients, none of whom have been billed for the service, according to the unit's Web site.

A recent state legislative audit faulted the police agency for failing to document maintenance needs and costs for its fleet of 12 twin-engine helicopters. Nine of them are more than 18 years old, including the second-oldest Trooper 2 that crashed Sunday. The helicopter, purchased in 1989, had an inspection Wednesday, Sheridan said.

State Police have defended the helicopter command, and the audit noted that the operation is highly regarded throughout the nation and has an "impeccable" safety record.

State lawmakers are likely to face major budget cuts in the coming months that could threaten a three-year plan to replace the helicopters.

© 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy.

 

[mike346]

I heard the announcement by the Charles Co dispatcher also. It sounded like it was all he could do to make it throught the transmission.

The EMT that was killed was from Station 12 - Waldorf/Westlake. Other stations from all over the county have been filling in at Station 12 all day. I'm sure its pretty rough over there.

 

[Grog]

An 18-year-old woman also injured in the traffic accident survived. She was in critical condition at a hospital.

Four people died while helping her. If she survives, she's going to be screwed in the head for a long time.

 

[N_Jay]

Four people died while helping her. If she survives, she's going to be screwed in the head for a long time.

It is a tough call.

Maybe it will give her direction.

We can all pray for the best possible outcome for all involved, families and friends.

 

[jparks29]

Four people died while helping her. If she survives, she's going to be screwed in the head for a long time.

I thought the same exact thing when I heard the details...

My brother called me when they lost radio contact (PG county FF living in Charles co.), given the weather, I knew it couldn't be good, but hoped for the best.... He called me back a bit later with the unfortunate news.....

These guys put their lives on the line day in/day out, to help others. They made the supreme sacrifice making sure others live where they may otherwise have died...

 

[mtcomm]

GPS Beacon

As I recall the helos transmitted every few minutes the GPS location over 44.74 MHz where the copter had been. About a year ago, I was near Trooper 8 and tried to pick up the burst of GPS signal but didn't hear it.

It took them two hours to find the helo and one of the stories said they pinged the cell phones to find them.
They might have saved someone else had they been able to get there more quickly.

Does anybody know why the GPS locator that they put in after the last crash didn't work?

Mike

 

[jparks29]

As I recall the helos transmitted every few minutes the GPS location over 44.74 MHz where the copter had been. About a year ago, I was near Trooper 8 and tried to pick up the burst of GPS signal but didn't hear it.

It took them two hours to find the helo and one of the stories said they pinged the cell phones to find them.
They might have saved someone else had they been able to get there more quickly.

Does anybody know why the GPS locator that they put in after the last crash didn't work?

Mike

The packet is rx'd by syscom, when the helo crashed, it probably damaged electronics/power/RF cables,etc.

 

[Mark]

Does anybody know why the GPS locator that they put in after the last crash didn't work?

Mike

Channel 11 news last night asked same question and others.
Why were these guys even up in wx like that?
Why did locator fail? etc.. Lots of questions to be answered.
Mentioned all MSP Med-Evac choppers are now grounded and that Delaware DSP and private
Air Med-Evacs will cover Maryland for now.

Mark

 

[fd2119]

Channel 11 news last night asked same question and others.
Why were these guys even up in wx like that?
Why did locator fail? etc.. Lots of questions to be answered.
Mentioned all MSP Med-Evac choppers are now grounded and that Delaware DSP and private
Air Med-Evacs will cover Maryland for now.

Mark

It's very easy for us all to second guess the decisions of the pilot, SYSCOM, and everyone else involved in the decision making process of dispatching a helicopter. We are fortunate, in that we have the luxury of time and more information than they had available to them at the time, not to mention being alive.

While questioning the mission, I feel it's important to question the questioner's motivations. Is the person looking to find fault, or are they looking to learn from the past events? Surely some will try to use this horrible event to further their political agendas (the private versus MSP debate), like it or not.

As has been mentioned, MSP has grounded their fleet until further notice; US Park Police, PA State Police, DE State Police, and others (such as STAT Medevac) will be covering the calls until then.

Here's to cherishing the memories that we may have of the dead, and to the healing of these wounds. Move on, but do not forget.

MSP has over 20 medevac helicopters.

Actually, they have 12 helicopters, plus, I believe, a single fixed wing aircraft set up for passenger transport (prisoner extradition and such). Having 12 helicopters allows for several helicopters to be in the shop, while still maintaining the coverage we, as citizens, expect and deserve.

 

[N_Jay]

The have come a long way since the days of 5 JetRangers.

 

[Dispatcher308]

MSP Medevac Crash

FD2119 thank you for what you said I couldnt have said it any better. Folks we need to stop the armchair quarterbacking as I have said in previous thread about medevacs cause we were not there and we do not know what the situation was, let the professionals and investigators work it out and learn from there. Yes this is a tragic event and the 9th deadliest this year, but lets respect those who have passed and for the time being hold your traffic on speculations and assumptions untill a full investigation is completed and released.

Thoughts and Prayers to all of those involved with the incident of Trooper 2, may God be with you through this trying time.

Nathan

 

[rdale]

If there's armchair quarterbacking going on - either it's in a different forum or you define it different than others Asking questions is not QBing. It's asking questions that the same professional investigators will ask.

 

[N_Jay]

Well said, Nathan

As a very worn out t-shirt of mine says;

"Maryland EMS - Your life is worth our time"

 

[maus92]

I think the flight following system transmitted over 44.74 has been supplanted by ADS-B, or at least supplemented by ADS-B. A radar altimeter / terrain awareness system should be retrofitted ASAP.