Las Vegas Now3 dead in medical helicopter crash north of Reno
Associated Press - November 14, 2009 8:05 PM ET
RENO, Nev. (AP) - Investigators say the pilot of a medical helicopter issued a mayday moments before the aircraft crashed into a hilly area north of Reno near the Nevada-California state line.
All three crew members - the pilot, flight nurse and paramedic - were killed.
The FAA said the helicopter -- an Aerospatiale AS350 -- had dropped off a patient at a Reno hospital and was returning to its base in Susanville, Calif., when it crashed around 2 a.m. Saturday. FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said a witness driving nearby told authorities he saw nothing unusual about the helicopter's flight before it fell rapidly from the sky.
The witness said he saw a fireball when the helicopter hit the ground.
The helicopter was operated by Mountain Lifeflight in Susanville, which issued a statement Saturday afternoon identifying the dead as pilot James Bradshaw, flight nurse Clinton Reger and paramedic Christopher Ritz.
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