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NTSB Hearings Probe Drastic Increase in Medical Helicopter Crashes
Posted on Mar 26, 2010
Over a year ago, The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) held hearings on how to stem the "drastic increase" in medical helicopter accidents across the Country.
During a recent 12-month period, the board investigated nine fatal medical helicopter accidents that killed a total on 35 people.
Among the issues to be discussed at the hearing will be flight operations, aircraft safety equipment, training and oversight.
A spokesperson for the NTSB said there were 55 EMS-related aviation accidents -- both fatal and nonfatal -- between January 2002 and January 2005 that could have been prevented with "simple corrective actions." In those crashes, 54 people were killed, and 18 were seriously injured.
The NTSB recommended to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in January 2006 that all medical helicopter or chopper operators should be required to develop and implement a risk evaluation program. They further recommended that they be required to use dispatch and flight procedures that include up-to-date weather information. Another recommendation by the agency was to require the installation of "terrain awareness and warning systems" on the emergency aircraft. A final recommendation was to require medical flight operators to follow federal regulations regarding their flights.
The recommendations of the NTSB have not been fully implemented, By the FAA as of 2010.
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