Helicopter crash kills 82-year-old pilot

By Anya Tikka
GREENE — The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is still investigating the cause of a helicopter crash that killed a pilot in Greene Township.
The Robinson R44 helicopter carried one person, who piloted the aircraft on its way from Doyletown, Pa., to Mountain Bay, Pa., said NTSB press officer Peter Knudson on Tuesday, two days after the crash. He could not say what the nature was of the short flight, which lasted between 45 to 50 minutes.
The identity of the pilot killed in the accident was only recently released by the Pike County Coroner’s Office. He was John Meyer of Jamison, Bucks County. He was 82 years old.
Noone else was hurt when the helicopter crashed in the woods.
Knudson said the pilot passed his medical examination in March and reported more than 2,500 total fly-outs.
The accident did have an "ear-witness," Knudson said.
“Someone heard an aircraft fly over their house about half a mile from the accident, between 11 a.m. and noon," said Knudson. "He described hearing a loud boom.”
There was a significant post-crash fire, Knudsen said. Local emergency crews were alerted.
At this point, the investigators are still at the accident scene gathering information to analyze what lead to the crash. But there's likely to be a long wait for the answers. Knudsen said the average time to reach a conclusion is 12 months.
“An update will be available at the end of next week, two weeks from the accident,” he said.
Pike County Emergency Management’s Director Tim Knapp said in an email he had no comment, and that the investigation is being lead by the NTSB.