Board hasn’t released reports on helicopter and plane accidents
Andrews – The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating two aircraft incidents with connections to Western Carolina Regional Airport.
A medical helicopter based at the airport crashed while taking a patient from Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital in Peachtree to Mission Hospital in Asheville on March 9. The aircraft lost power near Andrews but the pilot, who was not named, was able to set it down on a stretch of highway in Burningtown, west of the Macon County Airport and northwest of Franklin, at about 7 p.m. March 9.
A pilot and two medics – along with one patient – were aboard. Injuries were minor, but the helicopter was a total loss.
Life Force Air Medical, which operates the Cherokee County Life Force 6 helicopter, temporarily suspended operations. It issued an update via its Facebook page April 10.
“The entire Life Force Team would like to say thank you to our partners and the community for the love and support shown to us during our recent aircraft incident,” Life Force Air Medical said.
“Everyone continues to recover and is doing well. Starting tomorrow, Tuesday, April 11, the Life Force 6 base will go back in-service. We will be in a non-Life Force branded EC-135 helicopter for an undetermined time frame. Please be patient with us during this time and note that the rest of our aircraft and crew have been back in-service for several weeks now.
“We are looking forward to getting Life Force 6 back to normal operations and we thank you for your patience and understanding.”
The National Transportation Safety Board issued a preliminary report that provides basic information about the crash, but no conclusions.
The investigation includes representatives from Airbus Helicopters and the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft
Accident Investigation. Investigators did not travel to the crash site.
The National Transportation Safety Board has not yet released any information about a single-engine experimental plane crash off Fairview Road halfway between Andrews and Marble on April 15.
The pilot, an Army special operations helicopter pilot, was killed in the crash. He was identified as Robert “Bobby” Ibrahim, 36, of Hopkinsville, Ky. Ibrahim, the sole occupant, was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to published reports, Fort Campbell officials confirmed Ibrahim was a “Night Stalker” assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. He joined the U.S. Army in 2005 and arrived at Fort Campbell in 2019.
He was a native of Cocoa, Fla. He is survived by his wife, Melissa Ibrahim, herself an Army warrant officer and helicopter pilot.
Services are scheduled for Saturday, with visitation from noon-3 p.m. and services at 3 p.m. at Maddux-Fuqua-Hinton Funeral Home in Hopkinsville, Ky.
The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment’s mission is to organize, equip, train, resource and employ Army special operations aviation forces worldwide in support of contingency missions and combatant commanders, according to the unit’s website, soc.mil/USASOAC/160th.html.
“Known as Night Stalkers, these soldiers are recognized for their proficiency in nighttime operations,” the website says. “They are highly trained and ready to accomplish the very toughest missions in all environments, anywhere in the world, day or night, with unparalleled precision. They employ highly modified Chinook, Black Hawk and assault and attack configurations of Little Bird helicopters.
“Soldiers of the 160th have been actively and continuously engaged in the combat operations since October 2001. Today, the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment continues a sustained and active forward presence in the U.S. Central Command area of operations at multiple locations in support of operations Enduring Freedom. Our crews also provide support to U.S. Southern, Pacific, Africa, and European commands.”