Incident Overview
A helicopter was en route to evacuate a truck driver injured in a highway accident. The pilot, a 2,905-hour instrument-rated commercial helicopter pilot, was flying at night over an unlit, very sparsely populated rural area. The visibility was severely restricted by thick smoke from fires in Mexico. The helicopter crashed 19 miles west of the truck accident site, indicating that the pilot failed to recognize his intended destination and flew past it. The helicopter impacted trees and terrain while in a left turn, with a nose-down attitude between 85 and 95 degrees. No distress calls were received from the helicopter, and there were no reported eyewitnesses to the accident.
Pilot Background
The pilot held a commercial helicopter certificate with an instrument rating. He had accumulated 4 hours of actual instrument flight time and 45 hours of simulated instrument flight time, with none of this instrument experience occurring within the 90 days preceding the accident. The pilot was reported to have been concerned about night flights in the area due to the lack of ground lights to maintain visual reference. Another helicopter pilot described the area west of the highway as "a big black hole."
Aircraft Condition
An examination of the helicopter revealed no discrepancies that could have prevented normal flight operations. The pilot who flew the helicopter immediately prior to the accident flight stated that "the aircraft flew well and responded normally."
Environmental Factors
The flight took place during dark night conditions over an unlit area. Visibility was severely restricted by thick smoke from fires in Mexico. The lack of ground lights made visual reference difficult, and the pilot had expressed concern about this aspect of flying in the region at night.