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NTSB investigators found that the engine on the Action News Eurocopter AS-350A-STAR that crashed in December, killing the two on board, had separated from the airframe during the accident sequence but no anomalies of the engine were found that would have precluded normal operations. The NTSB report said the helicopter's most recent continuous airworthiness inspection was completed on the day of the deadly crash.
On Dec. 19, 2023 a pilot and videographer on Chopper 6, flying for 6ABC Action News Team WPVI in Philadelphia, an ABC affiliate, heading back from an assignment at the Jersey Shore when it crashed in the woods, killing both men on board. The preliminary report said the chopper left the Northeast Philadelphia Airport (PNE) after being dispatched to a scene in the Smithville, New Jersey area for the third flight of the day for the copter and crew. The helicopter was refueled before the accident flight. Chopper 6 arrived on the scene 20 minutes later and began orbiting to gather video footage for the news station and about 10 minutes later, the crew was cleared to return to PNE.RELATED STORY:News helicopter crashes in New Jersey woods, killing 2
U.S. Helicopters was notified by the news station assignment desk that attempts had been made to reach the crew for another assignment but they could not make contact by telephone. After confirming Chopper 6 did not return to PNE, the last location information and the time frame of last contact were obtained and given to state and local authorities, as well as possible location information based on ADS-B tracking, which showed the helicopter's last location at about four nautical miles east/northeast of the Hammonton Municipal Airport (N81) in Hammonton, New Jersey. On Dec. 20 the wreckage was found in a densely wooded area in the Wharton State Forest near Hammonton.
Preliminary air traffic control data obtained by the FAA revealed that the copter orbited the scene, climbing to about 1,000 feet mean sea level while heading directly to PNE, paralleling the outbound course from PNE it had flown to the scene. The helicopter drifted right off the established flight tracking, passing through its outbound course from PNE before beginning to descend and passing through an altitude of 775 ft msl. Chopper 6 continued its descent through 700 ft msl with a groundspeed increasing through 93 knots. One minute later, it had descended through 400 ft msl and was accelerating through 103 knots. Another minute passed and the chopper had descended through 250 ft at 107 knots and the final position was recorded about 10 seconds later when it was traveling at a ground speed of 115 knots.
One witness told investigators he saw a solid light traveling quickly at a steep angle and another saw what he described as a "giant orange ball" descending into the forest. The copter impacted the ground and a post-impact fire ensued. The wreckage path extended from the first tree strike for about 600 ft where the main wreckage came to rest. Most of the helicopter was heavily impacted-fragmented and was consumed by the fire, except for portions of the tail boom, doors and small pieces that had separated in the area of the initial impact. The instrument panel was separated and heavily damaged and the cockpit/cabin area was destroyed.
All three main rotor blades were found at the main wreckage site, still attached at the root ends and damaged in the fire. All three showed extensive thermal damage and damage consistent with the high rotational energy of the rotor system. The report said two of the blades appeared to be more heavily impact-damaged on the outboard ends and displayed broom straw-type signatures. Main rotor blade debris was found at the start of the wreckage path and throughout the woods leading to the main wreckage. There were trees observed with smooth cuts consistent with main rotor blade strikes in a long, shallow descending path through the woods to the main ground impact area.
Other components, like the main rotor transmission and several electric components, were found separated from the helicopter. Functional continuity of the flight control system could not be determined due to the fire damage but investigators traced the flight path from their cockpit input devices to the aerodynamic component connections through the thermally or blunt impact damage area and no pre-impact anomalies were found. All four cabin doors were separated from the airframe and found on the ground near the broken tree limbs at the start of the wreckage path. Much of the wreckage appeared to have damage consistent with the impact and post-crash fire.NEW: NJ Park Police just gave an update on the Chopper 6 crash. Investigators will be on site in the Wharton Forest for several hours today. ?@NBCPhiladelphia? pic.twitter.com/xgOSzufGzY— Matt DeLucia (@MattDeLucia) December 20, 2023
The engine had separated from the airframe during the accident sequence but the prelim did not indicate when. Investigators found the engine still attached to the main transmission via the liaison tube and noted in the report that it was facing the opposite direction of how the main cabin came to rest. The prelim said the engine showed various states of thermal damage. Investigators did not find any engine anomalies that would have precluded normal operations.
FAA records indicate that the pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land, rotorcraft-helicopter and instrument helicopter. His most recent FAA second-class medical certificate was issued on July 18, 2023 when he had about 8,597 total flight hours. FAA and airplane maintenance records state that the helicopter was manufactured in 2013. The most recent continuous airworthiness inspection was completed on Dec. 19, the day of the crash. At the time of the inspection, Chopper 8 had roughly 7,300 total hours of operation.
According to WPVI, the two crew members killed were 68-year-old pilot Monroe Smith and 45-year-old photographer Chris Dougherty. The station spoke to a former Navy pilot and aviation attorney about the report's findings. John Gagliano told 6ABC that the fact that the helicopter completed maintenance on the day of the crash is notable.
"It's particularly important that this [helicopter] came out of maintenance the same day of the crash, a comprehensive airworthiness inspection on the same day of the crash that was listed towards the end of the report," Gagliano told 6ABC WPVI. "There are many, many accidents that happen right after maintenance, right after inspections."
A probable cause, if found, will be included in the final report. A final NTSB report will be released in the next 12-18 months.