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I got life flighted once from a highway, $15,000 out of pocket. Thank the Lord every day for those pilots.In many part of the country, air ambulance service is being cut back due to the extreme expense and lack of necessity in terms of patient outcomes. For example, in Indiana, it used to be that anyone could summon a trauma helicopter- and the patient was stuck with $10,000 or more in costs. That is changing- but it is driving the restriction.
Obviously, Alaska requires both helicopter and fixed-wing air service - as do much of the rural West.
God bless these heroes.
In my opinion as someone that flew for a living for many years, I'm guessing major control malfunction, severe icing with stall, or cardiac event (the pilot was 63). The King Air is a really stable, reliable, and easy to fly turboprop. Debris in the water (searcher reports said it was part of a wing) means a high-speed impact and also that they probably died on impact, rather than by drowning. My prayers for the searchers, they are out there in brutal conditions.The Latest: Names released of those onboard missing plane
The Latest on missing medical flight in Alaska (all times local):
6:35 p.m.
Guardian Flight, which operated the medical airplane that went missing in Alaska, has released the names of those onboard.
The pilot is 63-year-old Patrick Coyle, the flight nurse is 30-year-old Stacie Rae Morse, and the flight paramedic is 43-year-old Margaret Langston Allen. The company statement says all are based in Juneau.
[...]
The Coast Guard said Wednesday evening that debris from a plane had been found about 22-miles west of Kake, but officials don't know if it's from the missing King Air 200 air ambulance.
Good question. They will probably have to send it in to the FAA or something?How long does it take to confirm if the pieces are from the ambulance?
Wreckage is removed when possible (depends on environment)and transported to a hangar at the nearest airport (sometimes private aircraft owners will let the FAA and NTSB use their private hangar, other times it may be a hangar at a Fixed Base Operation). The NTSB doesn't do ALL fatal accidents, some they just get copies of all the FAA's findings and go from there, but on high profile ones both will have teams. The FAA team is usually from the nearest Flight Standards office, but on high profile ones often a special team fro the Washington DC office works it. They run separate but parallel investigations - the FAA is looking at nine defined areas of responsibility (FAA Order 8020.11)and whether any federal laws were broken that will require enforcement (civil penalty of suspension or revocation of an airman or operator certificate) and the NTSB is looking at the probable cause. They may be joined by an investigator from the aircraft manufacturer who is made an official party to the investigation. If there are human remains the FAA team is responsible for getting a "tox box' to the coroner for tissue samples for toxicology tests which are shipped off and done in OKC. The coroner then does the autopsies. Identification of the plane is typically done with the Registration Number(known as the N number) if enough of the fuselage is intact or data plates on the engines or copies of any maintenance or engine logs kept on the airplane.Good question. They will probably have to send it in to the FAA or something?
Maybe @GraceG knows better.
Wow, I asked Alexa but she answered the airships Graf Zeppelin and Hindenburg operated regular transatlantic flights from Germany to North America and Brazil in the 1930‘s. LOL.Wreckage is removed when possible (depends on environment)and transported to a hangar at the nearest airport (sometimes private aircraft owners will let the FAA and NTSB use their private hangar, other times it may be a hangar at a Fixed Base Operation). The NTSB doesn't do ALL fatal accidents, some they just get copies of all the FAA's findings and go from there, but on high profile ones both will have teams. The FAA team is usually from the nearest Flight Standards office, but on high profile ones often a special team fro the Washington DC office works it. They run separate but parallel investigations - the FAA is looking at nine defined areas of responsibility (FAA Order 8020.11)and whether any federal laws were broken that will require enforcement (civil penalty of suspension or revocation of an airman or operator certificate) and the NTSB is looking at the probable cause. They may be joined by an investigator from the aircraft manufacturer who is made an official party to the investigation. If there are human remains the FAA team is responsible for getting a "tox box' to the coroner for tissue samples for toxicology tests which are shipped off and done in OKC. The coroner then does the autopsies. Identification of the plane is typically done with the Registration Number(known as the N number) if enough of the fuselage is intact or data plates on the engines or copies of any maintenance or engine logs kept on the airplane.
That's good news - it would be even better if they could recover it. Such beacons are typically supplied with electrical power by a lithium battery. Once the beacon becomes immersed into water, a built-in "water switch" activates it via the water's presence completing an electrical circuit, and the beacon starts emitting its "pings"; the battery power should be sufficient for at least 30 days after the activation so they've got some time. And just an FYI "black boxes" are not black. They are bright orange and VERY heavy.Searchers find beacon signal of missing Alaska plane
The owners of an air ambulance that disappeared in Alaska with three people on board say searchers have detected the beacon signal from the missing plane’s cockpit voice recorder.
Guardian Flight spokesman Jim Gregory says the signal was detected Tuesday.
The company says in a statement searchers will work on pinpointing the location of the device from the King Air 200 that disappeared Jan. 29 en route to pick up a patient in the southeast community of Kake.
[...]
Black box from missing Guardian Flight recovered from Frederick Sound
Tuesday, March 19th 2019, 7:41 AM AKDT
Updated:
Tuesday, March 19th 2019, 7:44 AM AKDT
By: Elizabeth Roman
The submersible Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) commissioned by Guardian Flight has located and recovered the Cockpit Voice Recorder (Black Box) of our aircraft under water in Alaska’s Frederick Sound. The ROV has also identified a landing gear and an engine from the aircraft.
The search for our beloved crew is continuing. All questions regarding recovery of the aircraft and the plans for the Cockpit Voice Recorder should be directed to the NTSB.
While this is a positive development in our search, the confirmation of our tragedy is a heartbreaking time for the Guardian Flight family and the families of our friends. Please respect their privacy and ours during this emotional and sad time.
As we continue the search for our beloved friends, we continue to honor their memory and recognize their contributions to the well being of Alaskans through their dedicated careers flying patients to higher levels of medical care.
We will continue to post updates as appropriate.
Black box from missing Guardian Flight recovered from Frederick Sound