Eurocopter

When a manufacturer can successfully meld form and function in a product’s design the results are invariably aesthetically and economically satisfying. In the mid-1980s, when MBB (Messerschmitt-Bolkow-Blohm) began development of its BO 108, it had no idea how successfully the helicopter’s form would let it perform many missions. Initially, the BO 108 was intended as […]

At about 2245 central time, a Eurocopter EC120B crashed near Boonville shortly after taking off, killing the pilot. At the time of the crash, the weather report consisted of: wind 350 at 8 knots gusting to 18; visibility 3/4 mile; heavy thunderstorms with rain and mist; broken clouds at 300 and 900 feet agl, overcast layer at 3,100 feet agl; temperature 22; dew point 21….

About 17:40 EST, a Eurocopter EC-135-P1 operating as a news helicopter for a local television station crashed into the Passaic River. The pilot and the camera operator received minor injuries. The flight used a radio call sign of Chopper 4. The flight had passed over the ILS localizer final approach course for Runway 22L at Newark when the pilot transmitted, May Day, May Day, Chopper 4 is… About 5 seconds later, the pilot transmitted, May Day, May Day, our engines are out, were going down. Another news helicopter followed Chopper 4, recorded the forced landing on video, and reported the helicopter was down in the river. The pilot received a head injury and had no direct memory of the…

At about 12:04 ADT, a Eurocopter helicopter struck the Juneau ice field about 16 miles north of Juneau. The sightseeing flight was being operated as a Part 135 flight. Five of the occupants had minor injuries; the other passenger was seriously injured. The pilot said he was attempting to return to the Juneau airport after completion of an ice field sightseeing tour flight when the lack of surface features and light snow caused a disorientation that led to him flying into the ground. Three other company helicopters began searching for the first one, and one of them crashed, with the two occupants uninjured. A third company helicopter was dispatched to the crash of the second, and it picked up…

At 12:16 EDT, a Eurocopter BK117, operating as an air medical helicopter, collided with a radio transmission tower located on the Weedon Island State Preserve. The pilot and two passengers were killed. The helicopter had dropped off a patient at Bayfront Medical Center and was returning to St. Joseph Hospital in Tampa along a newly established route. The new routing was in response to noise complaints from neighborhoods along the previous route. A witness said the helicopter was flying at about 500 feet agl when it hit a guy wire and crashed….

At 14:20 mountain time, an American Eurocopters AS350-B2 crashed into mountainous terrain during a sightseeing flight. The pilot and five passengers were killed and one passenger suffered serious injuries. The flight had toured the Grand Canyon and was en route to its base in Las Vegas when the accident occurred. The surviving passenger said the helicopter got quiet and fell from the sky. The wreckage indicated the helicopter had descended approximately straight down to impact….

At about 1335 Pacific time, a Eurocopter AS-350B collided with the surface of Honey Lake about 13 miles southeast of Susanville. The pilot was killed and two passengers were seriously injured. A passenger said that, just before the accident, the pilot stated on the intercom, Boy, its disorienting when the lake is this smooth. The wreckage was located about 1,000 feet from the shore….