https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/aviation/2021/04/13/ntsb-heli-ski-pilot-was-maneuvering-over-a-chugach-mountain-ridge-just-before-crash-that-killed-5/?utm_medium=email&email=124609826%2f%3futm_medium%3demail&email=124609826&utm_source=second-street&utm_campaign=Heli-ski+pilot+was+maneuvering+over+a+Chugach+mountain+ridge+just+before+crash+that+killed+5
NTSB: Heli-ski pilot was maneuvering over a Chugach mountain ridge just before crash that killed 5
From the link...
The pilot of a helicopter that crashed last month in the Chugach Mountains, killing five people and leaving one survivor, was maneuvering over a ridge for several minutes before impact, according to the first report on the accident by federal investigators.
The men were on a half-day heli-ski trip in the backcountry above Knik Glacier, authorities say.
A data track from the helicopter indicates that the group had already taken off and landed in the mountains near the glacier several times, and may have been looking for a spot to set down.
The crash of the Airbus AS350B3 about 21 miles southeast of Palmer killed the Soloy Helicopters pilot, two highly respected guides and two Europeans, including a billionaire considered one of the wealthiest men in Europe.
A lone survivor waited for hours for rescue inside the snow-filled helicopter.
[Medical condition improves for lone survivor of heli-ski crash that killed 5 in Chugach Mountains]
The National Transportation Safety Board preliminary report released Tuesday provides no insight into what may have caused the March 27 crash. Any finding will take months as investigators piece together information from interviews, data recorders and wreckage.
Instead, it summarizes what investigators know so far: The group took off from a rental house on Wasilla Lake. The trip was booked through Tordrillo Mountain Lodge but the group hadn’t yet arrived there, lodge representatives have said.
The helicopter was flying multiple legs for several hours that Saturday afternoon, typical for a heli-ski trip with numerous runs.
