Bell 206 Helicopter used in Organ Transplant procurement Crash Kills Doctor and 2 others on board

On December 26, 2011 a Bell 206 helicopter flying from the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, to Shands, Florida crashed because of poor visibility and weather conditions, killing all on board.

The Bell 206 medical helicopter was on route to pick up a heart transplant at a Gainesville Hospital when the crashed occurred.  The crash killed Dr. Luis Bonilla, a heart surgeon, David Hines, an organ procurement technician, and Pilot E. Hoke Smith, of St. Augustine based SK Logistics Company.  The medical transport helicopter company operates as SK Jets and its fleet operates from the St. Augustine airport.

Due to weather conditions, the pilot of the Bell 206 helicopter became spatially disoriented causing him to strike a 50 foot pine tree and several other trees as it crashed in a wooded area about 12 miles northeast of the Palatka Municipal Airport.

Due to the crash, the heart was not able to be transported to Jacksonville and finding a new match for the heart would have taken longer than the four hour window between the harvest and the transplant operation.

The Pilot E. Hoke Smith was a decorated veteran of combat missions in Vietnam.  Mr. Smith routinely flew medical transport flights, primarily during holidays when he gave his employees time off from his company SK Logistics.

Contact a Helicopter Lawyer

If you have been injured or a loved one has been killed in a helicopter crash, then call us 24/7 for an immediate consultation to discuss the details of the accident and learn what we can do to help protect your legal rights. Whether the accident was caused by negligence on the part of the helicopter owner, hospital or corporation, the manufacturer or due to lack of training, poor maintenance, pilot or operator error, tail rotor failure, sudden loss of power, defective electronics or engine failure or flying in bad weather conditions, we can investigate the case and provide you the answers you need. Call Toll Free 1-800-883-9858 and talk to a Board Certified Trial Lawyer with over 30 years of legal experience or fill out our online form by clicking below:

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While a Tucson Police Department Air Support Unit was training near the Tucson International Airport the aircrew witnessed a Robinson R-22 civilian helicopter crash. The Police aircrew made an immediate landing and directed emergency responders to the downed Robinson R-22 aircraft.

The air support crew heard the pilot’s distress call, and then relayed the situation to officers on the ground. The Robinson R-22 crashed in an undeveloped desert area which is on the southwestern portion of the Raytheon Missile System facility. The police air crew then directed emergency responders to the crash site.

The pilot of the Robinson R-22 helicopter reported engine failure when it went down about 1.5 miles south of Tucson International Airport. There were 2 people on board the chopper. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and engine failure may be to blame for the Robinson R-22 helicopter crash.

The only person aboard the Robinson R-22 who was treated for injuries was the pilot. The pilot of the downed Robinson R-22 was airlifted to University Medical Center (UMC) for treatment.

Raytheon was operating the helicopter which is registered to the Double Eagle Aviation Flight School. The Double Eagle Aviation Flight School is located at the Tucson International Airport.

A Pennsylvania couple was on their honeymoon after marrying on November 5, 2011 when the Eurocopter EC-130 Helicopter excursion they were on; crashed, killing all on board as they were flying over the scenic Hawaiian Island of Molokai.

Michael and Nicole Abel, were from Murrysville, Pennsylvania, and had only been married six days when their tour chopper lost altitude and smashed into a ridge after a freak attack of bad weather.  The tour pilot, Nathan Cline and two Canadians from Ontario also died in this horrific accident.

Their wedding photographer, Joe Appel said the two had remarkable chemistry together. ‘It was pretty obvious they had a bright future together. … They were a very sweet couple, very devoted to each other’.

Michael and Nicole Abel both worked for the Westinghouse nuclear power company at the corporate headquarters in Cranberry, Pennsylvania.

According to witnesses, a storm front suddenly blew across the island of Molokai and caught the tour helicopter, a Eurocopter EC-130. The helicopter crashed into a ridge behind an elementary school, where it exploded into flames on impact. Other eyewitness accounts said rain and a storm front suddenly caught the helicopter as strong wind gusts blew through the island.

Firefighters and Police officers used all-terrain vehicles to reach the remote crash site in the mountains. Four bodies were pulled from the wreckage, and a fifth was underneath the aircraft.

School officials scrambled to keep all the students inside the elementary school. Rescuers worked on a smoking area in the mountains, which was visible from the school yard, according to the Molokai Dispatch.

Mr. and Mrs. Abel and the Canadian victims were on a 45-minute tour of West Maui and Molokai operated by Blue Hawaiian Helicopters.

Blue Hawaiian offices closed Friday, so the company officials could review procedures. While Federal aviation investigators arrived in Hawaii to begin going through the wreckage to determine what caused the crash.

The EC-130 chopper that crashed was less than a year old and was leased from Nevada Helicopter Leasing LLC. Tour helicopters have come under heavy scrutiny over their safety in recent years around the country.

Blue Hawaiian conducts approximately 160,000 tours each year on all of the Hawaiian Islands, and another Blue Hawaiian helicopter was involved in a July 2000 crash that killed seven people on Maui.

Contact a Helicopter Lawyer

If you have been injured or a loved one has been killed in a helicopter crash, then call us 24/7 for an immediate consultation to discuss the details of the accident and learn what we can do to help protect your legal rights. Whether the accident was caused by negligence on the part of the helicopter owner, hospital or corporation, the manufacturer or due to lack of training, poor maintenance, pilot or operator error, tail rotor failure, sudden loss of power, defective electronics or engine failure or flying in bad weather conditions, we can investigate the case and provide you the answers you need. Call Toll Free 1-800-883-9858 and talk to a Board Certified Trial Lawyer with over 30 years of legal experience or fill out our online form by clicking below:

Legal Help: Contact a Helicopter Lawyer

A National Guard OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopter crashed in Campbell County, Tennessee. The crash killed the two Knoxville pilots. The fatal aviation accident occurred near the Interstate 75 in the evening. The cause for the crash is unknown, yet the pilots were conducting a routine training flight at the time. The helicopter reportedly hit power lines at some point during the aviation accident, causing power outages in the area. The crash is currently under investigation.

In a UH-1Y (Huey) helicopter at Marine training station Camp Pendleton, one Marine died in a crash in Southern California. The other five are injured. The cause of the crash is still under investigation. The crash started a small fire at the site. The helicopter was a UH-1Y (Huey) belonging to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing designed by Bell Helicopter. The helicopter is described as a medium sized chopper with two engines and one four bladed main rotor. The Marine Corps currently has 44 of the UH-1Y helicopters, which are said to operate in extreme conditions such as Arctic cold or desert heat.

Two helicopter pilots survived a crash in a field in Mesa, Arizona. The pilots were aboard a Boeing Bell 212 helicopter. The reason for why the chopper went down is unknown and under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration. The helicopter was part of a three-plane Apache test flight for Boeing. The helicopter crashed four miles north of the takeoff. The two pilots were rushed to the hospital by airlift. It was only by the pilots’ experience that they were able to survive this crash. The investigation is still going on to find a probable cause for the accident.

A helicopter with three passengers onboard crashed in Indiana, Pennsylvania while filming a reality show. The three passengers and pilot were flying a Robinson R44. Two of the three passengers were taken to hospitals. The helicopter crashed into two buildings off the campus of Indiana University. The pilot who was hospitalized developed respiratory problems died three weeks after the crash. Students inside the building where the helicopter crash were lucky to have survived, as they could have been killed by the accident, too. The chopper’s blades sliced through apartment walls, causing minor injuries to some residents. The cause for the crash is unknown yet under investigation.

After a CH-53D Sea Stallion helicopter crashed off Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, one Marine died and three were seriously injured. The helicopter was making an emergency landing about two miles off the coast of Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay when the crash happened. The Marine Corps is investigating its cause. The helicopter remained on its side in a shallow part of the bay and is expected to be salvaged. Of the other three crewmembers aboard, two were in intensive care while the other recovered quickly.

A Sikorsky helicopter burst into flames after crashing into a building in El Segundo, California. The helicopter was carrying a large air-conditioning unit off one of the buildings at an office complex when the pilot lost control and crashed. The crash set the first two flors of the building on fire. It took forty minutes and seventy firemen to put the fire out. The pilot was able to pulled out of the cockpit right before the helicopter caught fire. The pilot was rushed to the hospital with broken bones and burns and is expected to recover. The helicopter was completely destroyed with the fire and the pilot was lucky to have escaped before its destruction.