Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - The National Transportation Safety Board has issued it's preliminary report on the April 26 crash of a Mercy Flight helicopter in Elba, N.Y. which claimed the lives of a pilot and flight instructor.
The report does not suggest a cause and is only a preliminary finding of the evidence gathered from the wreckage on site as well as eyewitness accounts.
A series of flights were planned on the day of the crash as part of a flight review being conducted and the crash occurred during the second flight of the day.
In the report, the NTSB notes, "Several eyewitnesses observed and heard the helicopter flying overhead before to the accident. One stated that he observed the helicopter "almost stationary" after it flew over, and then as it started to fly away, he heard a loud "bang", and the helicopter began to descend out of control. An additional witness stated that the helicopter was hovering before it "fell apart" with the fuselage falling separately and another witness stated she did not see the helicopter but heard what sounded like an engine making a "whooshing" sound, then "three loud and rapid cracks" in succession."
The engines were located in the main wreckage site and the tail rotor assembly was located about 400 feet away. "All four main rotor blades were separated from the main rotor head and discovered within 550 ft northwest of the main wreckage," the report states.
Killed in the crash were pilot James Sauer, 60, of Churchville, a retired New York State Police pilot, and Stewart Dietrick, 60, of Prosper, Texas, a flight instructor.
A full and more conclusive report from the NTSB will be released at a later date.
