MCFARLAND, Calif. (AP) – No obvious causes have presented themselves and no distress call went out from a medical helicopter that crashed and killed all four people aboard in Central California, authorities said.
The thick fog and heavy rain at the time are at the forefront of the investigation, but federal authorities are still gathering data on that and other possible causes including mechanics and the pilot’s history, Joshua Cawthra of the National Transportation Board said at a briefing Friday.
The NTSB is leading the investigation of the crash that killed a pilot, a nurse, a paramedic and a woman they were taking to a Bakersfield hospital when the SkyLife air ambulance crashed, officials said.
He said there were no communications with air traffic controllers or dispatchers in the moments before the Bell 407 helicopter went down.
“Hopefully at the end we’ll be able to say what happened, why it happened and ultimately prevent this type of accident from happening again,” Cawthra said.