PennSTAR helicopter crashes in Del.; pilot killed

The pilot of a PennSTAR helicopter who was conducting a training flight died Thursday after crashing in New Castle County, Del., authorities said.

The pilot was the only person in the aircraft, a Delaware State Police spokesman, Cpl. Jeffrey Hale, said. Police identified him late Thursday as Michael R. Murphy, a 37-year-old from Franklinville, Gloucester County.

The 2006 Airbus EC135 helicopter crashed about 11:55 a.m. into a drainage ditch in the back of a U.S. Postal Service facility on Quigley Boulevard in New Castle, "then became engulfed in flames," Hale said. Firefighters extinguished the fire.

Murphy was pronounced dead at the scene. No one on the ground was injured, but flying debris and flames from the crash caused minor property damage to several vehicles and an unoccupied Postal Service maintenance building, Hale said.

Penn Medicine spokeswoman Susan Phillips said in a statement that the helicopter was operated by Louisiana-based Metro Aviation, which provides aviation services for PennSTAR, the air transportation service for the University of Pennsylvania Health System.

"The pilot of the helicopter was conducting a training flight. No patients or Penn Medicine employees were on board. We have no further information at this time," the statement said.

Kristen King Holmes, a spokeswoman for Metro Aviation, said in an email: "Our thoughts and prayers are with our pilot and the entire PennSTAR and Metro Aviation family. The accident is under investigation and we have dispatched our operations, safety and maintenance leadership to the scene. We are cooperating with the investigation, but that is all I can share at this time."

Hale said the pilot was employed by Metro Aviation and had flown from Atlantic City International Airport. He said the pilot was conducting training in the area of New Castle Airport when the copter crashed.

The helicopter had taken off from Atlantic City at 11:17 a.m. for the 38-minute flight.

Hale said the cause of the crash was under investigation.

The Delaware State Police, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the Federal Aviation Administration were conducting an investigation, which is in its early stages, Hale said.

The Wilmington News Journal, citing airport general manager Stephen Williams, reported that preliminary indications were that the helicopter was conducting practice approaches at the airport.