Neither of the two medevac Bell 407s that collided in midair June 29 over Flagstaff, Ariz., was equipped with TCAS or any kind of cockpit voice or data recorder, an NTSB spokesman told AIN. However, data from the engine control units (ECUs) and satellite GPS receivers on board both aircraft, an Outerlink satellite tracking system on one of the helicopters and a ground-based surveillance camera at the Flagstaff Medical Center are providing investigators with valuable clues about what happened.
Meanwhile, the crash has led at least one industry group to call for tighter rules governing medevac operations, re-ignited the debate about the necessity of a large percentage of medevac flights, and could prompt increased NTSB scrutiny of the sector. Safety Board chairman Mark Rosenker last month called the latest spate of medevac crashes “disturbing,” and NTSB public relations people used the crash as an opportunity to re-circulate the Board’s 2006 recommendations, which include the study of expanded minimum equipment lists and tighter operating rules for medevac aircraft.
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