BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. — A preliminary National Transportation Safety Board report shows a helicopter that crashed in Boynton Beach, killing the flight instructor and student pilot had completed a 100-hour maintenance inspection on the same day as the fatal flight.
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The fatal crash happened on March 23 just before 12:30 p.m. Investigators said the Robinson R44 helicopter crashed into a warehouse located in the 3800 block of South Congress Avenue, shortly after the aircraft underwent a maintenance inspection.
The crash killed flight instructor Alejandro Carrasco, 28, of West Palm Beach, and student pilot Bryan Menna, 52, from Michigan. According to pilot records, Carrasco had about 822 total hours of civilian flight experience, the report said.
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Carrasco reported an emergency about 27 seconds after first reporting his position, the NTSB's preliminary report stated.
"We're going to be landing out here in one of these fields, we've got something going on with the helicopter," Carrasco said in the report.
About 12 seconds later, a company helicopter attempted to contact the aircraft but received no response.
The helicopter crashed into the roof of the vacant warehouse about 6 miles south of Palm Beach County Park Airport in Lantana, the preliminary report said. The impact severed a water line connected to the building's sprinkler system, which dispersed a large amount of water over the wreckage. There was no post-accident fire.
NTSB investigators said they also discovered a critical mechanical finding in the wreckage. The upper right push-pull tube in the main rotor flight controls was separated from the lower rod end, and other nuts securing flight control components were found to be only finger tight. Investigators also noted varying degrees of corrosion on multiple fasteners, the report said.
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The engine showed no malfunction. Three hydraulic servos, push-pull tubes, and rod ends have been sent to the NTSB Materials Laboratory in Washington, D.C., for further examination.
The NTSB said the findings are preliminary and subject to change as the investigation continues.
