POLK COUNTY, Texas — The National Transportation Safety Board has released a report on what led to a deadly helicopter crash last month in Polk County. One passenger was killed and three others were injured, including the pilot.
Daniel King, 54, was pronounced dead at the scene, while Braydon King, 26, and Brocton King, 23, were taken to an area hospital for treatment.
The pilot, identified by Texas DPS as 73-year-old John Martin, of Montgomery, was also taken to a hospital.
Authorities said in their report that they spoke to the two injured passengers about the incident.
They said Daniel King won the helicopter ride at a local charity auction. The plan was to fly over his childhood home near Woodville, in Tyler County.
According to the NTSB report, the helicopter left the Livingston Municipal Airport around 11 a.m. on Dec 30. Daniel King sat in front next to Martin while Braydon and Brocton King sat in the back.
The helicopter had to turn away from Woodville due to low clouds, so they flew back to King's current home near Livingston.
Braydon and Brocton told the NTSB that the helicopter started rotating over the trees where the accident happened. One of them believed Martin was intentionally trying to maneuver the helicopter but realized it wasn't intentional when it kept spinning.
According to the report, the helicopter made two full spins before its rotor blades struck a tree. It then fell to the ground and landed on top of a woodpile.
The NTSB reported the crash happening at around 11:40 a.m., less than an hour after the helicopter left the airport.
One of the passengers said that he checked on the pilot and the front passenger, then started moving any switch he could find until the helicopter's engine stopped.
The report says the helicopter's location was tracked until minutes before the crash. The final location in the track data was less than two miles from the point of impact.
Officials say they couldn't investigate the helicopter at the crash site due to its positioning. They're now planning to perform a post-recovery examination.
