This article has been revised to incorporate remarks from the Regional Emergency Medical Services Authority.
Documents examined by the RGJ reveal that the air medical service provider implicated in a Care Flight accident that resulted in the death of five individuals in the Nevada desert is currently under its fourth National Transportation Safety Board inquiry since 2018.
Three of those accidents were deadly and claimed the lives of 11 individuals, as per authorities.
The Flight Guardian company, which owns and operates more than 60 flying aircrafts, experienced a mid-flight incident outside of Reno on February 24th. The aircraft involved was a single-engine, fixed-wing, turboprop plane called the Pilatus PC-12, which is managed by Washoe’s Regional Medical Emergency Services Authority.
On snowy Friday night, REMSA, a Utah-based company, hired a Nevada-based transport company to bring a patient from Stagecoach in Mountain Iron, roughly 50 miles southeast of Reno, to Salt Lake City. The plane soon descended at a high rate of speed before crashing near Salt Lake City.
The crash is currently the focus of the fourth investigation involving a plane owned by Guardian Flight since 2018, as stated by Bruce Landsberg, vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board.
Here is what we know about the recent investigation that unfolds next and the fatal crashes that they have been involved in, concerning Flight Guardian.
As per Landsberg, the collision on February 24th close to Reno is the second incident within a duration of three months and the fourth occurrence since 2018.
In 2018, Landsberg reported that Guardian Flight was subjected to an inquiry due to a collision in Arizona. The investigation revealed that an autopilot malfunction and subsequent excessive correction by the pilot were the reasons behind the incident, and fortunately, there were no casualties on that flight.
Based on the inquiry, the remains of the team were never found following the airplane accident in Frederick Sound in Southeastern Alaska. A collision in January 2019 near Juneau, Alaska, claimed the lives of a pilot, nurse, and paramedic, who were near the end of their flight to collect a patient for transportation.
After a 22-month inquiry concluded in November 2020, the reason for the accident remained unknown.
The crew was on its way to pick up a patient when the medical transport Flight Life Hawaii crashed into the deep waters off the coast of Maui, according to multiple media reports. An investigation is still underway into the fatal accident that claimed the lives of three people in Hawaii on December 15, 2022. The National Transportation Safety Board is still conducting the investigation into the accident that resulted in the deaths of three individuals in Hawaii on December 15, 2022.
It is anticipated that the findings from that investigation will take approximately one year. A month subsequent to this incident, the remains and debris from the collision were discovered.
The RGJ contacted Guardian Flight regarding the investigations, but the company has not responded to requests for comment.
Additional information regarding Guardian Flight, pilot timetables
According to the company’s website, Flight Guardian pilots typically work in shifts of two weeks on and two weeks off, during which they would often comment on how many flights they pilot. The company also provides housing for the crew during their two weeks off and two weeks on.
Guardian Flight’s website states that there are numerous pilot job opportunities available, including positions in Nevada.
The listed signing incentives were $50,000 with salaries varying from $80,000 to $100,000 annually.
REMSA’s contract with Guardian Flight
REMSA refused to disclose the specifics of its agreement with Guardian Flight to the RGJ.
As per a statement conveyed on Friday by Alexia Jobson, Public Relations director at REMSA, our business contracts and partnership arrangements are confidential and undergo regular evaluation as a private, not-for-profit organization rooted in the community.
Flight Care has been providing critical transportation services for the medical needs of the region for over 40 years, as stated in their statement.
Following the fatal crash on February 24th, REMSA has suspended its Care Flights.
Flight Care is currently paused and has not confirmed a time and date for resuming ground and wing fixed, wing rotor transportation. Flight Care will notify our media and community partners when the service resumes, as we are currently assessing readiness to resume the service. We appreciate the assistance of neighboring agencies in providing critical care transportation across our service area. Flight Guardian, the company spokesperson, announced that flights in all U.S. Locations have not yet resumed since the crash on Thursday.
What is the next step in this inquiry?
Here’s what Federal investigators will analyze:.
REMSA Care Flights remains suspended after the accident that resulted in the deaths of 5 individuals.
The debris from which data and information could be extracted contains avionics devices, even though there are no flight data recorders or voice recorders on the aircraft..
The pieces and parts of the three-dimensional giant puzzle will be transported to Phoenix to be reassembled, according to investigators. Additionally, the investigators will send the plane to the NTSB headquarters in Washington, D.C. For analysis.
A preliminary report on the crash that occurred on Feb. 24 could potentially be finished within a week, whereas a final report may take over a year to be completed.