Newsday

Pilot Killed In Helicopter Crash

BURLINGTON, N.C. (AP) -- A Duke University Medical Center helicopter crashed shortly after the pilot initiated a maintenance check while en route to pick up a patient.

The pilot, the only person on board, was killed in the late Monday crash.

The helicopter was going to pick up a patient when the pilot noticed something wrong and landed the plane at Burlington hospital, a Duke news release said.

The pilot conducted a maintenance check while the rest of the crew ferried the patient by ambulance to Duke, in Durham about 30 miles away. Shortly after takeoff, the aircraft crashed and caught fire in a residential neighborhood.

The identity of the pilot, who worked for Corporate Jets of Pittsburgh, was not immediately released.

No injuries or damage was reported in homes surrounding the accident.

''We're very fortunate,'' Burlington Police Maj. Randy Jones said.

National Transportation Safety Board officials are investigating.

AP-NY-10-17-00 0653EDT< 

-- Rachel Gibson (rgibson@hotmail.com), October 17, 2000