Russian Helicopter Crash

August 28, 2006

Russian Helicopter Crash

ANKARA — All five passengers on board a Russian firefighting helicopter that has crashed in Turkey have survived, the Turkish Agriculture Ministry said Monday.

The K-32 had been helping extinguish forest fires in a Turkish province of Antalia, a Turkish news agency reported.But a spokeswoman for the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry said it was not a ministry aircraft.

Irina Andrianova said ministry helicopters had helped put out fires in Greece, “but not this year.” Sergei Alifanov, a representative of the Russian consulate in Antalia, said the mission was checking the information about any Russians who may have been on board the helicopter.

With its compact shape and a lift capacity of 11,000 pounds, Russian-made Kamov helicopters are widely used around the world in forest-logging and firefighting operations.

SOURCE: RIA Novosti

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August 14, 2006

Oregon Robinson R44 Helicopter Crash

A Robinson R44 helicopter crashed in foggy weather off the Oregon coast Sunday morning near Astoria, Oregon killing two men and a woman. The Robinson R44 helicopter had been flying in tandem as part of the Flight of Discovery which was retracing the path of Lewis and Clark.

The US Coast Guard received a call at about 8:20 a.m. from another helicopter pilot who reported he had lost communications and visual contact with a Robinson R44 helicopter.

According to news reports, the weather conditions where the helicopter crashed were foggy, with a cloud ceiling of about 100 feet and visibility of about 1/2 mile.

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August 11, 2006

Sabino Canyon Helicopter Crash

Helicopter Crash in Sabino Canyon Area Kills One

An air photo helicopter from out of state crashed near Sabino Canyon Thursday.

There were two people on board, the pilot, and a photographer taking pictures of the Tucson area.

It happened around 9:00 Thursday morning in Box Camp Canyon, just East of Sabino Canyon.

The pilot, Brandon Hahaj, directed rescue crews to the crash site.

He apparently hiked to a visible area and used his cell phone to tell rescuers where he was.

Deputy Nicole Feldt with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department told News 4, “He actually was telling the 911 dispatcher, ‘Hey they just passed me, make a u-turn, I’m over here,’ and actually guided them right to where he was by waving his shirt ion the air to them to attract their attention.”

Hahaj stayed overnight Thursday at University Medical Center for observation. We’re told he has non-life threatening injuries.

His passenger did not survive the crash.

Authorities say the chopper is an air photo helicopter and the pair was visiting Sabino Canyon taking aerial pictures when they crashed in Box Camp Canyon.

Trams and hiking trails in Sabino Canyon, a popular recreation area that is part of the Coronado National Forest, were closed temporarily to visitor activity because of the crash.

The canyon was closed last week because of damage caused by runoff from summer storms but had reopened this week.

SOURCE: KVOA

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August 2, 2006

Lawsuit Filed Over Helicopter Crash

The widow of a photographer killed in a helicopter crash while filming “The Final Season” is suing actor Sean Astin, the movie’s producers and the pilot, among others. Kathryn Schlotzhauer alleges that the crash on June 30th in Benton County could have been avoided if the crew scouted the scene and noted the power lines that brought the helicopter down. Her husband, 50-year-old Roland Schlotzhauer of Lenexa, Kansas, was killed in the crash. He was filming a parade scene in the final days of the shoot when the helicopter crashed into a cornfield near Walford.

The crash also seriously injured 72 year old pilot Richard Green of Hudson and producer Tony Wilson of Dallas Center. Both survivors are named among 19 defendants in a wrongful death lawsuit filed in Polk County.

The suit also names Wilson’s special-effects firm Applied Art and Technology of Des Moines, and the East-Central Iowa Rural Electric Cooperative, which owns the power lines.

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