"Like a Cruise Missile Hitting a Target"

That's how the pilot of one tourist chopper described the collision he witnessed involving a friend:

The helicopter pilot who radioed a desperate, last-minute warning moments before he witnessed a deadly midair collision over the Hudson River says the plane that struck his colleague's sight-seeing chopper "looked like a cruise missile hitting a target."

Liberty Helicopters pilot Ben Lane warned his friend Jeremy Clarke on Saturday that the small plane was barreling toward him, but couldn't save Clarke and the five Italian tourists who were aboard his helicopter.

Clarke had just lifted off when Lane, who was refueling his own craft on the W. 30th St. heliport used by their company, saw the plane bearing down on his friend's chopper, the New York Daily News reported. The airplane pilot may not have even seen the helicopter in its path, he said.

Nine people died in the crash, including three members of a Pennsylvania family aboard the plane.

Lane told the Daily News that a crash was inevitable in the busy skies over the Hudson River. He says helicopter pilots stay in constant radio contact, but many small plane pilots — he calls them "weekend warriors" — do not.

"We were borderline surprised that it took so long for a crash like this to happen," said the 34-year-old pilot.

I think I know now what happened. All aircraft have blind spots. Having flown single-engine low-winged aircraft similar to the Piper involved in the crash I can tell you that there is a blind spot on those aircraft below and in front of the plane because of the position of the wings and engine cowling. The helicopter also has a blind spot to the rear and above the chopper.

It sounds like the helicopter was climbing below the approaching Piper, and because of those blind spots neither could see the other until the collision. In fact, I doubt if the helicopter pilot ever knew what hit him.

The right wing of the Piper struck the main rotor of the helicopter severing the wing and shattering the rotor, resulting in fatal damage to both aircraft. The occupants of the two aircraft probably survived the initial collision. Not a good way to go.

Look for increased regulation of the VFR corridor around New York, something which lawmakers will undoubtedly push for and something which probably won't help. The fact that there has not been an accident like that before tells me the rules were working pretty well, and no amount of regulation can ensure perfect safety.

However, "do something-itus" will likely strike again.