Steve76
1st May 2004, 14:32
What's the skinny Bert?
Poor pilot or Kamakazi attitude?
LAS VEGAS -- A helicopter pilot who died last year with six tourists in a fiery crash in the Grand Canyon had been disciplined at least once following a safety complaint, it was reported Friday.
Takashi Mezaki, 45, was suspended for one week without pay by Las Vegas-based Sundance Helicopters Inc., and was given a written warning in August 2001 after a passenger complained about a trip that included abrupt maneuvers, according to a memo obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The trip did not meet safety standards and was grounds for disciplinary action, according to the memo signed by Sundance Chief Pilot Burl Boyd.
Sundance president Jim Granquist declined comment to The Associated Press on Friday, citing litigation. A wife of one of the victims of the crash has filed a wrongful death lawsuit.
Mezaki was piloting a Sundance helicopter with sightseers from Japan, Germany and West Virginia when it crashed Sept. 20, 2003, in a remote area of the Grand Canyon, about 80 miles southeast of Las Vegas.
Authorities said they found evidence a rotor blade struck the near-vertical canyon wall while the Aerospatiale AS-350 helicopter was shuttling the group from the canyon rim to the Colorado River. The helicopter was destroyed by fire.
A preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board found no signs of mechanical malfunction. A final NTSB crash report has not been issued.
Poor pilot or Kamakazi attitude?
LAS VEGAS -- A helicopter pilot who died last year with six tourists in a fiery crash in the Grand Canyon had been disciplined at least once following a safety complaint, it was reported Friday.
Takashi Mezaki, 45, was suspended for one week without pay by Las Vegas-based Sundance Helicopters Inc., and was given a written warning in August 2001 after a passenger complained about a trip that included abrupt maneuvers, according to a memo obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The trip did not meet safety standards and was grounds for disciplinary action, according to the memo signed by Sundance Chief Pilot Burl Boyd.
Sundance president Jim Granquist declined comment to The Associated Press on Friday, citing litigation. A wife of one of the victims of the crash has filed a wrongful death lawsuit.
Mezaki was piloting a Sundance helicopter with sightseers from Japan, Germany and West Virginia when it crashed Sept. 20, 2003, in a remote area of the Grand Canyon, about 80 miles southeast of Las Vegas.
Authorities said they found evidence a rotor blade struck the near-vertical canyon wall while the Aerospatiale AS-350 helicopter was shuttling the group from the canyon rim to the Colorado River. The helicopter was destroyed by fire.
A preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board found no signs of mechanical malfunction. A final NTSB crash report has not been issued.