Helicopter Approached Twice Before D.C. Crash

A National Transportation Safety Board preliminary investigation has determined that a MedSTAR helicopter made two landing approaches at the Washington Hospital Center before crashing at the Armed Forces Retirement Home on May 30.

According to the NTSB report, the helicopter, which originated from Greater Southeast Community Hospital, approached the Washington Hospital Center helipad from the south and overflew it. The helicopter then circled around on the north side of the hospital center and approached the helipad flying southbound, again overflying the pad. The helicopter then crashed to the east of the hospital center -- about a half-mile north of the helipad -- on the golf course at the Armed Forces Retirement home.

The pilot and two medical crewmembers were seriously injured, and 51-year-old Steven Gaston, a critically ill patient on board the helicopter, later died at the hospital for reasons not yet determined, the report said.

The pilot, Darryl Johnson, said that when the helicopter approached the pad, it "shuffled" and the engine's rpm increased, so he aborted the landing. For the rest of the flight, the helicopter's No. 1 engine was operated in manual mode and the No. 2 engine remained in automatic mode.

Johnson said the "shuffle" worsened over the golf course and the helicopter became uncontrollable. Johnson called "mayday" and alerted his crew before the helicopter crashed.

David Martin, the flight paramedic, said that after the first approach he heard an audio alarm in his headset and "it felt like the helicopter lost power." As the helicopter made its second approach, Martin heard the alarm again and the landing was aborted.

Martin said that Johnson announced that the helicopter was "losing power" and could not slow down. Johnson planned to land at a lower helipad, but over the golf course, the helicopter began to vibrate and "went into a spin," Martin said.

According to Martin, it felt and sounded like the helicopter was losing power.

"As long as he wasn't trying to land, he could keep flying," Martin said. "He couldn't slow it down, but we could have stayed up and [continued to fly]."

The flight nurse, Nancy Vanderweele, offered a description similar to Martin's, but she did not recall hearing the alarms or the pilot announcing the loss of power.

One witness said that he heard the helicopter "sputter" and the sounds of impact, but he did not see the accident.

A second witness said she saw the helicopter flying low and apparently out of control over the golf course.

NTSB officials said the report is preliminary information that could change and may contain errors, which will be corrected in the final report.

To read the full report, click here .

Previous Stories:

• June 1, 2006: M.E.: Chopper Crash Contributed To Victim's Death
• May 31, 2006: NTSB Leads MedSTAR Crash Investigation

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