Education cited as reason for drop in helicopter crashes
A helicopter wreck in Palm Beach Gardens recently was a rarity, as the number of national and local helicopter crashes continues to drop, according to the latest Federal Aviation Administration count.
There were 106 crashes this past year in the U.S., with 17 of them fatal, the FAA said this past week. That’s 12 percent fewer wrecks than in 2015 and 27 percent fewer than 2013.
In Florida, there were only two crashes this past year, compared to nine the year before.
“The FAA and the helicopter industry have worked together to educate the civil helicopter community about safe practices, to drive these improved results,” FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said in a news release. “The FAA and the industry also are taking an active role in advancing safety through new technology, collaborative policy changes and proactive outreach.”
One of this past year’s fatal c rashes happened Sept . 6 in Palm Bay: Three people were killed when a Sikorsky helicopter crashed into a field soon after it took off from Orlando Melbourne International Airport.
NTSB investigators told WFTV-9 that the crew at the time was taking the helicopter on a maintenance test flight.
The Palm Bay incident was one of just two helicopter crashes in Florida this past year, according a National Transportation Safety Board database. The other happened Jan. 16, 2016, in Zephyrhills, when a strong gust of wind tipped an experimental helicopter that was preparing to rise. The pilot, the only person on-board at the