MAY 7, 2015
DENTON, TEXAS
Engine trouble preceded a helicopter crash Wednesday
afternoon involving an instructor and a student pilot, according to Denton
police.
The crash, reported at about 2:15 p.m., happened in a
thicket of trees on a large piece of private property just west of Interstate
35W, along Robson Ranch Road in Denton.
The aircraft, a 1984 F28F Enstrom helicopter, owned and
operated by Longhorn Helicopters – based in Denton – sustained significant
damage when it crashed to the ground.
The flight instructor was treated for a broken arm,
according to Denton Police Officer Orlando Hinojosa, and the student pilot
suffered a lower back injury.
Emergency personnel had difficulty reaching the crash site,
due to its location in a wooded area as far as two miles removed from the
nearest paved road.
A
helicopter crashed in Denton County Wednesday afternoon. (Published Wednesday,
May 6, 2015)
"When you get instructions about, 'Go a
mile-and-a-half, turn at the big rock and follow the dirt road,' it took us a
little bit to get up there," Hinojosa said.
Because of the remote location of the crash, medical
helicopters were required to transport the patients to area hospitals,
according to police.
Representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration
confirmed Wednesday that a team of investigators will work to determine what
caused the crash.
A flight instructor and a student pilot were injured after
their helicopter crashed into trees in Denton.
A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman confirmed a
helicopter crashed Wednesday afternoon, and that the agency is investigating to
determine the cause. The helicopter is owned by Longhorn Helicopters Inc., a
flight school out of the Denton Enterprise Airport.
Denton police spokesman Orlando Hinojosa says officers
responded to a call about a helicopter that crashed in a wooded area by Robson
Ranch that is close to a local airport.
The 25-year-old female instructor was flown to Texas Health
Presbyterian Hospital Denton with a broken arm. A 23-year-old male student
pilot was flown to The Medical Center of Plano for treatment of a lower back
injury.
Hinojosa said both victims' injuries are not life
threatening.
Source: fox5.com