NTSB: Fog Disoriented Pilot, Caused Fatal Medivac Crash

Patchy fog and something known as the “graveyard spiral” is what the National Transportation Safety Board is blaming for the cause of a medical helicopter crash in 2013 that killed everyone on board.

In the official report released this week, NTSB investigators said the helicopter took off from St. Joseph Hospital in London and was returning to its Air Evac EMS base in Manchester.

The report said the helicopter was about 750 feet to its base when the pilot lost control.

According to the NTSB, the last weather report that the helicopter received was nearly three hours before the crash and showed clear skies and a low flight risk.

10 minutes before the accident, a new and updated weather forecast was released that indicated fog development was possible in the area.

The report said because the helicopter was in the air, the new forecast was never transmitted the crew.

The official report said, the maneuvering flight path of the helicopter was consistent with an attempt to avoid fog and then a loss of control.

The report said the fog blocked the pilot from seeing the horizon or the ground and caused spatial disorientation.

According to the NTSB report, a spatial disorientation is where the motion-sensing function of the inner ear confuses a pilot, creating a very compelling illusion that an aircraft is turning.

The report said the last communication from the helicopter was someone saying “oh no” and then nothing more. The communication was recorded on Air Evac EMS Inc. radio at the base two seconds after 11:15 p.m

Along with the report, the NTSB released stills from a security camera near the crash site and up close pictures of the evidence.

The report said NTSB investigators believe the pilot made a maneuver that placed too much stress on the helicopter, causing it to break apart in the air.

The report also said the pilot was trained to fly in low visibility conditions, but hadn’t done so recently.

Those killed in the crash were the pilot, 61-year-old Eddy Sizemore, a former Laurel County sheriff’s deputy; 40-year-old flight paramedic Herman "Lee" Dobbs of London; and 28-year-old flight nurse Jesse Jones of Pineville.