Copter accident injures LR pilot assisting police
Craft’s rotors scrape asphalt
A police helicopter accident severely injured a retired Little Rock police officer Thursday morning, though officials believe his injuries are not life-threatening, authorities said.
A senior pilot whom police have not yet identified was testing a new battery in the aircraft just before 11 a.m. Thursday near 11400 Ironton Cut-off Road when a gust of “straight-line wind” tipped the helicopter over, spokesman Lt. Michael Ford said.
The rotors of the helicopter, which had been on a small platform for the battery test, struck the asphalt, Ford said, causing the aircraft to spin on the ground.
The pilot had a severe head injury, but Ford said the man was on his feet and talking when he left in an ambulance. Ford would not identify the pilot or to which hospital he was taken until all family members had been notified. All family members had not been contacted as of Thursday evening.
The helicopter was damaged beyond repair, Ford
said. Wreckage of the twoseat aircraft — Helicopter 4331 — reveals glass debris and a destroyed cockpit. Only one person was inside it at the time of the accident, Ford said.
Ford said this incident was the first of its kind for the Little Rock Police Department.
The injured man is a retired Little Rock Police Department pilot, Ford said, who still assists the department in a volunteer capacity.
A new battery had recently been installed in the aircraft, Ford said, and the officers were testing to ensure that it was working correctly.
Ford said the Federal Aviation Administration has been made aware of the accident, though the aircraft was not flying at the time.
FAA Southwest Region spokesman Lynn Lunsford said the agency inspected the aircraft and offered assistance to the Police Department, but said the helicopter is operated as a public use aircraft, meaning the FAA does not oversee its safety.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration defines straight-line winds — the type of wind that reportedly tipped the aircraft — as any thunderstorm wind not associated with rotation.
Several hours after the accident, Ford said the pilot was still in serious condition at the hospital.
The helicopter — a 2001 TH-67 Bell model, commonly known as a Jet Ranger — was acquired in December 2015 through a federal military surplus program, Ford confirmed.
Since the Jet Ranger was totaled, Ford said the department now has only one helicopter.
The accident happened at the department’s helipad, which is just west of Interstate 530 and less than a mile from the police training facility.
Ford said the aircraft is primarily used to monitor largecrowd events like festivals or state fairs and is rarely used in tactical situations like car chases or property searches.