Could They Have Contributed To Deadly Medical Helo Incident?

The body of Joseph Schaffer, pilot of an EC-135 medical helo that went down in the Potomac River near Washington, DC, Monday night, has now been recovered. Schaffer, a 30-year flight veteran, was still strapped in his seat, underwater approximately 40 feet from the crash site. He was found by rescuers and a cadaver dog.

The body of Nicole Kielar, a 29-year old flight paramedic, was recovered early Tuesday. The flight nurse, Jonathan Godfrey, was found clinging to the tail boom, which had separated from the aircraft in the accident.

"He said they hit something," said Alexandria, VA, firefighter Tom Wheatley in an interview with the Washington Post. "They didn't know what it was."

Wheatley and his fellow rescuers found the operation emotionally draining. "Here these people are saving lives all the time," he told the Post, his voice choked with emotion. "And now it's our turn to save theirs."

But what did the EC-135, which had just dropped off a patient, hit, if anything at all? The aircraft went down close to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge at the southern tip of DC. The bridge is being rebuilt and there are several tall construction cranes in the vicinity. The NTSB has spent much of this week looking at those cranes for signs of possible impact and, late Thursday, released this statement:

Today, investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board inspected the fifth (and tallest) of the five cranes along the Potomac River near the Wilson Bridge construction project. No structural damage or obvious aircraft strike indications were found on this crane, or the four other cranes that were inspected yesterday.

Investigators also revisited the accident site, and the sites along the Potomac River that matched the coordinates recorded by air traffic control radar and the operator's flight-following global positioning system (GPS). The projected track along these locations toward the accident site is about 300 feet from the nearest crane.

Investigators interviewed the surviving crewmember of the accident helicopter yesterday. The survivor told investigators that he did not recall seeing or hearing any cockpit warning indications during the flight, nor did he recall any abrupt maneuvers or sudden pilot reactions as they flew over the bridge. The survivor remembered flying over the bridge at one instant and then being in the water the next instant. When asked what he thought may have happened, he responded, "my instincts tell me that we hit something."

An initial examination of the wreckage has been completed, and no obvious pre-impact mechanical malfunctions were noted. The wreckage will be carefully cleaned and laid out tomorrow for a more detailed examination of its nose, cabin area, skids, and rotor blades.

Investigators at the NTSB's video laboratory are continuing attempts to enhance the bridge traffic video recording that shows an aircraft crossing the bridge (below)about the time of the accident. Investigators will attempt to obtain aircraft performance information from the video, including the helicopter's exact altitude and position relative to the bridge.

FAA Preliminary Accident Report

IDENTIFICATION
 Regis#: 136LN    Make/Model: EC35   Description: EC-135
 Date: 01/10/2005   Time: 1104

 Event Type: Accident  Highest Injury: Fatal   Mid Air: N  Missing: N
 Damage: Destroyed

LOCATION
 City: WASHINGTON         State: DC  Country: US

DESCRIPTION
 HELICOPTER, A EUROCOPTER CRASHED INTO THE POTOMAC RIVER, JUST SOUTH OF THE
 WOODROW WILSON BRIDGE. ACFT HAD JUST DROPPED OFF A PATIENT AT WASHINGTON
 HOSPITAL CENTER. TWO ARE REPORTED FATAL AND ONE SERIOUS, AND THE ACFT IS
 DESTROYED. WASHINGTON, DC

INJURY DATA   Total Fatal:  2
         # Crew:  3  Fat:  2   Ser:  1   Min:  0   Unk:  0
         # Pass:  0   Fat:  0   Ser:  0   Min:  0   Unk:  0
         # Grnd:       Fat:  0   Ser:  0   Min:  0   Unk:  0

WEATHER: NOT REPORTED                               

OTHER DATA
 Activity: Air Ambulance   Phase: Cruise   Operation: General Aviation

 Departed: WASHINGTON, DC       Dep Date: 01/10/2005  Dep. Time:  
 Destination: FREDERICKSBURG, VA    Flt Plan: NONE     Wx Briefing: U
 Last Radio Cont:
 Last Clearance:

 FAA FSDO: WASHINGTON IAD, DC (EA27)      Entry date: 01/11/2005 #

FMI: www.ntsb.gov