The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report on the medical helicopter crash that killed three crew members April 26 in northern Wisconsin.
The report indicates the helicopter had undergone 100- and 600-hour safety inspections on April 25, the day before the crash.
The Ascension Spirit crash killed pilot Rico Caruso, flight nurse Klint Mitchell and paramedic Greg Rosenthal.
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The Air Methods helicopter was on a return flight from Madison to its home base at the Howard Young Medical Center when it went down in clear skies in Hazelhurst.
There was no determination of the cause of the accident.
The report indicates that the helicopter sheared branches off a 70-foot tall tree in a wooded area when it went down.
It was equipped with an enhanced ground proximity warning system.
The report indicates that the pilot, Rico Caruso, had accumulated more than 3,200 hours of total flight time.
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