14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, October 17, 2012 in Erwinna, PA
Aircraft: AEROSPATIALE AS 355, registration: C-FXGM
Injuries: 1 Fatal.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
On October 17, 2012, about 0640 eastern daylight time, an Aerospatiale AS 355 F2, Canadian registration C-FXGM, operated by Catalyst Aviation LLC, was substantially damaged when it impacted trees and terrain shortly after takeoff from Brigham Heliport (4PN5), Erwinna, Pennsylvania. The certificated airline transport pilot was fatally injured. Dark night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The positioning flight, destined for Wings Field (LOM), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.
According to the operator, the pilot was scheduled to position the helicopter from a heliport located behind his home to LOM, where after fueling, passengers would embark for a local pipeline patrol flight. The pilot reported to the operator his intent to depart from the heliport via text message at 0637. No further communications were received from the pilot.
Several witnesses reported hearing the helicopter as it overflew the residential neighborhood about the time of the accident, and one witness observed two lights that she presumed to be the accident helicopter as they descended into trees behind her home. Each of the witnesses described the lighting conditions at the time of the accident as dark, and reported that visibility in the immediate area was restricted due to fog.
The accident site was located in a densely wooded area approximately 1,000 feet northeast of 4PN5. The initial impact point was identified by several damaged tree limbs about 75 feet above the ground. A wreckage path approximately 300 feet long, oriented roughly 350 degrees magnetic, extended from the initial impact point to where the main wreckage came to rest against a tree. The main wreckage was oriented on a westerly heading, and was largely consumed by a post-impact fire. Each of the three main rotor blades was accounted for at the accident scene, and all came to rest within 30 feet of the main wreckage. The tail boom was separated from the fuselage and was located along the wreckage path about 30 feet south of the main wreckage, with the tail rotor attached and intact.
Douglas W. Brigham of Erwinna, Pa.
Douglas W. Brigham, 52, passed away suddenly on Oct. 17, 2012. Born in 1960 in Wilmington Delaware Memorial Hospital and raised in West Chester, Doug was the beloved son of Richard T. Brigham and the late Margaret (Hoover) Brigham. Early in his life, he was an active member in the Good Fellowship Ambulance Club, which led to his lifelong passion of public service and law enforcement. He was a graduate of Colorado State University. At CSU he was a member of Campus Law Enforcement and then was a police officer on the West Chester University Campus in PA. He went on to become a Pennsylvania State Police Trooper and after 24 years, he retired at the rank of Corporal. While he served in many capacities, the most recent was in the aviation division. After his retirement, he was employed with Catalyst Aviation as a helicopter pilot. He was a member of the Delaware Valley Volunteer Fire Company, was Deputy Management Coordinator for Tinicum Township and a volunteer for Patient Airlift Services. Doug was a member of the West Chester Lodge #322, F. and A. M. Doug was the beloved husband of Lisa A. (Lemery) Brigham; brother of Katharine S. Brigham of West Chester, Ann Thomas of Louisville, Ky., Robert Brigham of Santa Monica, Calif. and Deborah Wray of Charlottesville, Va.; uncle of Stephen, Matthew, Nathan and great-niece, Samantha and his godsons, Nyle, Alex and Ryan Neumann of Lawrenceville, N.J. He is also survived by countless friends, many of whom he considered family.
Relatives and friends are invited to his memorial service, 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 20, at the Meeting House at the Westtown School, 975 Westtown Road, West Chester, PA 19382.
Interment will be private.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Family Fund for Garrett Ross, ENT Federal Credit Union, P.O. Box 15819, Colorado Springs, CO 80935-5819.
Arrangements by the Donohue Funeral Home, West Chester, 610-431-9000. Online at www.donohuefuneralhome.com.
http://www.legacy.com
IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: CFXGM Make/Model: AS55 Description: AS-355/555 ECUREUIL 2, TWINSTAR, FENNEC
Date: 10/17/2012 Time: 1030
Event Type: Accident Highest Injury: Fatal Mid Air: N Missing: N
Damage: Destroyed
LOCATION
City: ERWINNA State: PA Country: US
DESCRIPTION
AICRAFT CRASHED UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES. ERWINNA, PA
INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 1
# Crew: 0 Fat: 1 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Pass: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
OTHER DATA
Activity: Unknown Phase: Unknown Operation: OTHER
FAA FSDO: ALLENTOWN, PA (EA05) Entry date: 10/18/2012
View more videos at: http://nbcphiladelphia.com.
A retired Pennsylvania State Trooper crashed his helicopter in the Bucks County neighborhood where he lived on Wednesday morning. Doug Brigham flies in and out of his backyard in Tinicum Township and this morning, around 7 a.m., the chopper went down in a fiery crash on Uhlerstown Hill Road, just a few hundred feet from his home, killing Brigham.
Rescue crews and police are on the scene and so is the Federal Aviation Administration, which will investigate if this morning low cloud cover was a factor in the crash.
Brigham was a retired corporal with the Pennsylvania State Police, a member of the local fire company that responded to his crash and a member of the Tinicum Township's Department of Emergency Management, according investigators. He was also a volunteer pilot for Patient Airlift Services. He worked for a company called Catalyst Aviation.
Brigham once flew NBC10's own Vai Sikahema and Eagles coach Andy Reid to a benefit in the Poconos in May 2011.
Read more:
http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com
http://www.wfmz.com
TINICUM TWP., Pa. - A former Pennsylvania State Police trooper was killed in a helicopter crash in Bucks County early Wednesday, officials said.
The chopper went down and caught fire in the woods off Uhlerstown Hill Road, near Everbreeze Drive, in Tinicum Township, said officials, adding that the crash happened shortly after takeoff. Emergency crews said they got the call at 6:39 a.m.
Pennsylvania State Police identified the pilot as retired Cpl. Doug Brigham. No one else was on board.
Authorities said Brigham was also was a member of the Delaware Valley Fire Company, which responded to the crash site, and a member of the Tinicum Township Department of Emergency Management.
Brigham took off from a helipad in his yard on Everbreeze Drive, heading east, and crashed into a ravine 500 feet after takeoff, officials said.
Brigham worked for Catalyst Aviation in Medford, N.J.
The Federal Aviation Administration is handling the accident investigation.
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