Background
A company employee reported receiving a radio call from a pilot at a remote mountain site where the pilot was working on a transmitter tower. The pilot informed the employee that he was taking off and instructed that if the employee did not hear from him within one hour, to come look for him.
Accident Sequence
The helicopter subsequently crashed into the side of the mountain approximately one mile from the tower.
Witness Report
A witness near the accident site stated that winds were gusting to 50 miles per hour with heavy snow at the time.
Pilot Experience
The pilot had been receiving helicopter instruction and was endorsed for supervised solo flight only. According to the pilot's instructor, the pilot had told him that he had been flying the helicopter "all over the place. On top of mountains, calling on customers and basically doing just what he well wished with it." The instructor further stated that they had yet to cover training topics including pinnacle approaches, ridge line work, updrafts, downdrafts, turbulence, confined areas, and slope landings.