ATL05FA038

The pilot's improper decision to attempt VFR flight into known instrument flight conditions and failure to maintain altitude clearance resulted in an in-flight collision with trees and the ground.

The helicopter collided with trees and the ground while flying level with rising terrain during low cloud and low visibility condition. The pilot had earlier flown to a highway accident site in order to transport injured persons to the hospital. During the attempted loading of the injured persons, the chin bubble of the helicopter was damaged, and consequently the flight was canceled. The injured persons were ground transported by ambulance. A mechanic was dispatched to the site and he encountered moderate rain and gusty winds while en route. The mechanic made a temporary repair to the damaged area of the helicopter. According to the mechanic, the pilot indicated the site was a flood area and with a forecast of more rain, he preferred to move the helicopter. The mechanic suggested to the pilot that he relocate the aircraft locally to a school or hospital after first hovering after lift off and evaluating the weather. The mechanic would then drive the pilot from the relocation site to the destination. The pilot did not acknowledge his suggestion and made a walk-around inspection of the helicopter, and checked his flight charts for obstructions. The pilot started the helicopter and departed. There is no record that the pilot obtained a weather briefing by radio or by cell phone before departing the accident site. The wreckage was located the following morning. Doxylamine, a sedating over-the-counter antihistamine used in sleep aids and multi-symptom cold relievers, was found in the pilot's blood on toxicological examination. Pseudoephedrine, a decongestant available in many multi-symptom cold relievers, was also found in the pilot's blood.

HISTORY OF FLIGHT On January 5, 2005, at 2303 central standard time, an Aerospatiale AS350-D, N350RM, registered to Rocky Mountain Holdings LLC. doing business as Air Methods Corporation, operating as a 14 CFR Part 91 air ambulance positioning flight, collided with trees and the ground in the vicinity of Falkner, Mississippi. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the accident site and a company flight plan was filed. The pilot did not call the Medical Program Communications Center to initiate flight following after takeoff. The helicopter was destroyed. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. The flight originated from an open field located adjacent to County Road 564 in the vicinity of Falkner, Mississippi, on January 5, 2005, at 2303. According to Air Methods personnel, the pilot was dispatched from North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo, Mississippi, to an automobile accident located in the vicinity of County Road 564. The pilot called the Medical Program Communications Center by cell phone at 2100 and stated he had a problem with a damaged chin bubble. A company mechanic drove to the accident scene. During the drive the mechanic encountered moderate rain and some gusty winds. Upon arrival at the accident site, the mechanic inspected, and made a temporary repair on the helicopter chin bubble. The mechanic stated, "the weather at this time appeared to be deteriorating with both ceiling and visibility limited. It was difficult to judge as there were no lights in the area." The mechanic mentioned to the pilot that he might have to leave the aircraft and return to get it the next day. The pilot informed the mechanic that he had been told the field the helicopter was parked in was prone to flooding. The pilot stated he preferred to move the helicopter since it had been raining and more rain was forecast for the night. The mechanic suggested to the pilot that he might want to pick the helicopter up to a high hover to evaluate the ceiling and visibility and that he could relocate the helicopter to the school at Falkner, Mississippi or the Ripley Hospital helipad. The mechanic informed the pilot he would pick him up in his truck and they could ride back to Tupelo together. The mechanic stated the pilot made a walk around inspection of the helicopter and checked his flight charts for obstructions. The pilot started the helicopter and departed at 2303 climbing vertically to about 300 feet. The mechanic turned around, went back to the road, thanked the police, and departed. After driving a short distance the mechanic noticed his cell phone had telephone coverage. He called the Medical Program Communications Center, and asked if they had heard from the pilot. The Communications Center stated the pilot had not been in contact. The mechanic drove to the school and to the hospital helipad and did not observe the helicopter. The mechanic called the Communications Center and was informed the pilot had not arrived and stated they had initiated the overdue or missing aircraft procedures. Search personnel located the helicopter at 0607 on January 6, 2004. The Tippah County Sheriff stated he was at the automobile accident site with the helicopter pilot. A cold front had just passed through the area and the winds were strong and gusty with frequent downpours. The pilot was observed getting into the helicopter, and starting the engine and initiatiating a takeoff. The helicopter cleared the treetops and flew on a westerly heading towards Highway 15. The helicopter did not appear to gain much altitude as it was flying away. The helicopter lights disappeared from view about 1 mile after it departed. The Sheriff stated, "I thought maybe it was enveloped into the clouds of the low ceiling, but was instinctively I felt this was not the case." PERSONNEL INFORMATION Review of information on file with the FAA Airman's Certification Division, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, revealed the pilot was issued a commercial pilot certificate on May 11, 1985, with ratings for airplane single engine land, airplane multiengine land, rotorcraft helicopter, instrument airplane, and helicopter. In addition the pilot held a flight instructor certificate with ratings for airplane single engine land issued on December 18, 2002. The pilot held a mechanic certificate issued on December 2, 1983, with airframe and power plant ratings. The pilot held a second class medical issued on April 14, 2004, with the restriction "must wear corrective lenses." The pilot reported on his application for the medical certificate that his total flight time was 4,300 hours. Review of the company records revealed the pilot had 6,700 total flight hours, 4,850 hours was in helicopters of which 1,800 were in the AS350-D. The pilot had flown 27.5 hours in the last 90 days in the AS350D, 4.8 hours in the last 30 days, and .3 in the last 24 hours. No actual instrument flight time or simulated instrument flight time had been flown in the last 7 months. Company records showed the pilot had flown 110 hours of actual instruments of which 90 hours were flown in helicopters. The pilots last evaluation flight in basic instruments, and unusual attitudes was conducted on July 10, 2003. The pilot's last biennial flight review was on June 2, 2004. AIRCRAFT INFORMATION The last Approved Aircraft Inspection Program (AAIP), "Operation A" was conducted on December 24, 2004, and the total time on the airframe was 10,449.3 hours. The helicopter has flown 14 hours since the inspection. The total engine time as of January 4, 2005, was 6876.0. The last turbine assembly overhaul was conducted on February 26, 2004. The turbine total time was 3,318.5 and the engine total time was 6519.2 hours. The last recorded 24-month avionics inspection was conducted on November 30, 2004. The helicopter had Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) Number SH3324NM applied which changed the helicopter engine from a Honeywell LTS 101600A engine to a Rolls-Royce 250-C30M engine. The FAA Registry had not been updated to reflect the modification. METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION The Olive Branch Airport, Olive Branch, Mississippi, located 47 miles west of the accident site, and on the cold air side of the front, the 2340 surface weather observation was: wind 300-degrees at 10 knots, visibility 2 1/2 miles (present weather missing), ceiling broken at 500 feet, broken at 1,000 feet, overcast at 4,000 feet, temperature 46- degrees Fahrenheit, dew point temperature 46-degrees Fahrenheit, altimeter 29.88 with remarks: automated weather system without a precipitation discriminator, hourly precipitation less than 0.01 inches (trace). The National Weather Surface (NWS), Surface Analysis Chart for the south-central United States for 00:00 on January 6, 2005, depicted a cold front extending from Kentucky southwestward into Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, and into the Gulf of Mexico, and then turning west into Texas. The accident site was located in the immediate vicinity of the cold front. The station models across Mississippi depicted southerly winds at 10 to 15 knots ahead of the front, with a defined wind shift to the northwesterly on the cold air side of the front, with broken to overcast skies extending over the area. The southeast section of the NWS Weather Depiction Chart for 2200 on January 5, 2005, depicted the conditions prior to the accident. The chart indicated a band of instrument flight rule (IFR) conditions oriented in a northeast-to-southwest direction along and behind the cold frontal position extending from the northern portion of the chart from Illinois, Missouri, western Kentucky, and Tennessee, northwestern Mississippi, Arkansas, and western Louisiana, into eastern Texas. The station models in the IFR areas indicated ceilings ranging from 400 to 600 feet with visibilities restricted in light to moderate intensity rain. Several areas of IFR conditions were also depicted along the Gulf coast from the Flo