The crew was among 1,200 firefighters, assisted by nine helicopters, who were battling the Iron and Alps complex fires in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest that have burned 86,000 acres. Another firefighter assigned to the fires died late last month when he was hit by a falling tree. The lightning fire started June 21 and is 87% contained.
The Sikorsky S-61 was owned by Carson Helicopters of Grants Pass, Ore., which describes itself as one of the largest firefighting helicopter contractors with the Forest Service and Department of the Interior.
Asked whether the Sikorsky model had a history of safety problems, Higgins said: "There have been issues in the past. We have made some recommendations in the past to Sikorsky. My understanding is that those recommendations have been acted upon favorably."
In April, the FAA issued an "airworthiness directive" regarding Sikorsky S-model helicopters after one developed fatigue failures in the main rotor shaft. Carson Helicopters was among the companies alerted to the problem. The FAA also outlined a list of actions to "prevent structural failure, loss of power to the main rotor, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter."
However, according to a company spokesman, all of Carson's firefighting helicopters have been fitted with rotors made from a composite material that is not subject to the same structural failure.
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maria.laganga@latimes.com
patrick.mcgreevy@latimes.com
joe.mozingo@latimes.com
Times staff writer Julie Cart and researcher Maloy Moore contributed to this story.
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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)
LOST IN THE CRASH
Six of the firefighters killed in Tuesday's helicopter crash are shown below. Pilot Roark Schwanenberg, not shown, was also killed. The names of two firefighters who died have not yet been released.
[Please see photos below]
Shawn Blazer
Bryan Rich
Scott Charleson
Matthew Hammer
Edrik Gomez
David Steele
