Hoist fall victim incorrectly attached
A civilian volunteer who fell to his death while he was being lowered from a HH-60G operated by the California Air National Guard’s 129th Rescue Wing was not properly secured to his harness, according to a report released by the US Air Force Air Combat Command Aircraft Accident Investigation Board.
A civilian volunteer who fell to his death while he was being lowered from a HH-60G operated by the California Air National Guard’s 129th Rescue Wing (RQW) was not properly secured to his harness, according to a report released by the US Air Force Air Combat Command Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB). The accident occurred approximately 30 miles east of Visalia, California, on 12 September 2013.
Shane Krogen, the founder and executive director of the High Sierra Volunteer Trail Crew (HSVTC), was being lowered by members of the 129th RQW at Moffett Federal Airfield, California. The helicopter, working as part of California Joint Task Force Domestic Support (JTFDS) counterdrug operations, was participating in the environmental clean-up and restoration of a contaminated marijuana grow site in the Sequoia National Forest. The mission involved hoisting National Guard, law enforcement and HSVTC personnel into and out of remote illegal marijuana growing sites. The AAIB report states that these personnel were flying on the helicopter as Mission Essential Personnel (MEPs), although Air Force regulations do not allow civilian volunteers such as HSVTC members to serve in MEP roles nor be passengers on JTFDS-CD operations. The report notes that HSVTC members had been incorrectly recorded as members of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
At the time of the accident, the Pave Hawk helicopter was being flown by the copilot, and the hoist was being operated from the right side of the aircraft by an aircrew member from the Special Missions Aviation career field. The AAIB found, ‘by clear and convincing evidence’, that the cause of the accident was that Krogen, a recipient of the 2012 US Forest Service Regional Forester’s Volunteer of the Year Award, mistakenly attached the aircraft’s hoist to a non-load-bearing plastic D-ring of a tactical vest (an item of clothing with pockets for carrying equipment) instead of to the load-bearing metal D-ring of his harness. When the plastic D-ring broke, Krogen fell from the aircraft to the ground from an approximate 45-ft (14-m) hover and sustained fatal injuries.
The AAIB stated that ‘the preponderance of evidence’ suggested that one of the helicopter crew members ‘did not maintain adequate oversight during flight and hoist operations’ and that Krogen’s use of his personal equipment ‘excessively cluttered the area around the load-bearing metal D-ring’, interfering with safe connection and visual inspection.
Additionally, the Air Force stated: “Personnel from the 129th RQW, JTFDS and the California National Guard did not follow established procedures for determining Krogen’s status and gaining approval for his participation in the hoist operation. It is the Board president’s determination that these three factors substantially contributed to the mishap.”
Following the fall, Krogen was hoisted back onboard the helicopter using a litter and flown to Visalia Airport for onward transport by a ground ambulance, but he was announced dead after life-saving efforts at Kaweah Delta Medical Center.