Investigators for the National Transportation Safety Board announced last week that helicopter pilot error was the cause of two fatal crashes that occurred in South Carolina and Tennessee.
In March of 2010, a pilot and two nurses were killed when the pilot decided to fly back to his base hospital, despite an approaching storm. According to the NTSB, the 58 year-old pilot was finishing a 12 hour shift when he decided to go back to Brownsville, Tennessee. The storm included heavy rain, lightning, and wind speeds reaching up to 20 knots.
The board states in their report that the crash could have been avoided if the pilot chose to stay at the hospital and found an alternative way to get back home.
