A 2006 Airbus Helicopters AS350B2 crashed into a heavily wooded area 12 miles south of its base, the Howard Young Medical Center in Woodruff, Wisconsin, shortly after 10:55 p.m. Thursday. Registered as N127LN, the aeromedical helicopter was owned and operated by Air Methods as Spirit 2 for Ascension Wisconsin.
All three crewmembers aboard the helicopter were killed. Air Methods declined to identify the crewmembers “to respect the privacy of their families,” nor would it provide additional details. Photos from the scene indicate extensive structural damage.
The helicopter was on a 160-nm aeromedical repositioning flight from Madison, Wisconsin. It was reported missing shortly after the signal was lost from its GPS tracking system.
Weather at the estimated time of the accident reported by the nearest automated airport weather station approximately 15 miles to the north was calm winds, 10 miles visibility, clear skies, and temperature/dewpoint spread of 00/-01. The crash site was in an area with ridges, hills, and swamps, with intermittent snow cover, that needed to be accessed by amphibious all-terrain vehicles.