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Helicopter Crashes at Kitchawan Farm in Yorktown

The two male occupants of the helicopter walked off with no injuries and refused medical attention.

Update: Investigation of the cause of the helicopter crash at Kitchawan Farm in Yorktown could take up to a year, FAA officials. The identities of the pilot and passenger have also been released. Click here to read more.

Officials began dismantling the helicopter before it was removed from the property.

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A helicopter crashed down at Kitchawan Farm in Yorktown Friday evening, according to police and eyewitnesses. 

The craft crashed around 6:30 p.m. at a field on 716 Kitchawan Rd., a private residence.

Police said the two helicopter occupants were not seriously injured and according to EMS workers the two men refused medical attention.

The occupants' identities, and the chopper's destination, have not been released.

The N443FD helicopter – a 1955 Sikorsky S-55B – made a hard landing at the farm's field and flipped over on its side, Holly Baker of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told Patch. She said the crash may have been caused by a malfunctioning fuel pump. There was also fuel spill on the field, according to Yorktown firefighters. 

A neighbor told Patch he heard and watched the chopper go back and forth in distress. He described the engine to be sputtering and the helicopter was flying low. 

Baker said assessment of the damage to the helicopter is still ongoing. FAA investigators were on their way to the scene Friday evening. Police were still at scene investigating at 8 p.m. Responding agencies were Yorktown police, fire and and EMS personnel, as well as New York State and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) police. 

The crash site and home—a sprawling structure—are difficult to discern in the darkness. Police believe it was the homeowner at 716 Kitchawan who initially notified authorities.

Just a mile and a half away from this home, a small plane crashed in Yorktown last April, leaving two with minor injuries—a "miracle," police said. 

michele October 13, 2012 at 12:54 am
Westchester journal news said they were both taken to Westchester medical center which article is correct were they hurt or not?
michele October 13, 2012 at 12:56 am
LOHUD said they were both taken to Valhalla medical center which article is correct were they hurt or not?
before news is reported it should be correct
Plamena Pesheva (Editor) October 13, 2012 at 01:14 am
Michelle, I was told by police, firefighters and EMS workers that the two occupants of the helicopter were not injured and they refused medical attention. They were not taken to the hospital. Thanks!
Brian Carroll October 13, 2012 at 01:54 am
Thanks for the coverage. We live at 855 Old Kitchawan Rd. near 716 Kitchawan Rd. Funny thing is that I called the Yorktown Police after I heard and watched the chopper go back and forth in distress. The engine was sputtering and it was very low. Clearly something was wrong. Female Yorktown police officer answered when I explained what I was seeing live. She said there was no way of contacting the FAA. "Call us back if it goes down. We can't do anything about it until then." Really?? We just went through a big public hearing process on the "helipad" at IBM. This was not an IBM helicopter. But the point is that the Town Board and IBM both righteously said something like this could never happen and all the precautions are in place, etc, etc. This incident is a perfect test case of the Town's lack of readiness to deal with aviation accidents. Twice lucky! What is it going to take to become more prepared and do some training and get control over our air space? Brian Carroll
Thinker October 13, 2012 at 05:14 am
Brian Carroll, why did you feel the need to specify that it was a "female" officer??
William Demarest (Editor) October 13, 2012 at 09:52 am
Sounds like the commenter was trying to give as much detail as possible on his call about the incident.
William Demarest (Editor) October 13, 2012 at 09:55 am
Pretty amazing ... two aircraft incidents in the same area within a fairly short time and no one seriously hurt in either one. Pretty lucky!
David Hatcher October 13, 2012 at 12:08 pm
To Brian Carroll - Are you a helicopter pilot? Are you experienced or qualified to determine if a helicopter is "in distress" or the engine is "sputtering"? Are you helicopter pilot? I wasn't at the public hearing about the IBM helipad, so what is it that "could never happen"? An aircraft crash? Talk to John McEnroe, his parents had a Boeing 707 crash in their yard. We are all under the risk (very small) of having any type of aircraft crash in our yard. Sorry one happened so close to you.
Any time anyone has an aircraft so low it scares you report it to the police and THEN REPORT IT TO THE CLOSEST FAA FLIGHT STANDARDS DISTRICT OFFICE. The helicopter that crashed was built in 1955 not 1995. (I am a pilot helicopter and airplane, and a aircraft accident investigator)
Nummy October 13, 2012 at 01:13 pm
Mr Hatcher, you don't have to be experienced or qualified to know if a helicopter is "in distress" or the engine is "sputtering" But typing useless big letters dose nothing to help what he said either.
Brian Carroll, this should help you more then Hatchers big caps of useless info Farmingdale FSDO Contact the Office Address: 7150 Republic Airport Suite 235 Farmingdale, NY 11735 Phone: (631) 755-1300 Fax: (631) 694-5516 Email the Office Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday – Friday
Nummy October 13, 2012 at 01:20 pm
Hum! because she was Female, Why did you put two question marks you only asked one question?
Nummy October 13, 2012 at 03:01 pm
Mr Hatcher, you don't have to be experienced or qualified to know if a helicopter is "in distress" or the engine is "sputtering" But typing useless big letters dose nothing to help what he said either.
Brian Carroll, this should help you more then Hatchers big caps of useless info Farmingdale FSDO Contact the Office Address: 7150 Republic Airport Suite 235 Farmingdale, NY 11735 Phone: (631) 755-1300 Fax: (631) 694-5516 Email the Office Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday – Friday
tee sabo October 13, 2012 at 04:24 pm
You would think the local police would do that when they get a report, or at least they would look out the car window to corroborate and then call the FAA. The notion that the local police, paid by the local taxpayer, does nothing, and its up to the taxpayer to call the FAA is ridiculous.
Plamena Pesheva (Editor) October 13, 2012 at 05:16 pm
Investigation of the cause of the helicopter crash at Kitchawan Farm in Yorktown could take up to a year, FAA officials. The identities of the pilot and passenger have also been released. Click on the link for more details http://patch.com/A-yBmJ
Brian Carroll October 14, 2012 at 05:33 pm
AS they say, "if you see [hear] something, say something." I plan to provide the FAA information to the Town Board and the Police Dept and propose that we have a new protocol in place to deal with similar situations. We should have a few relatively safe places where aircraft can ditch in an emergency. The Pilot chose a logical place, but what he could not have known was that the ground there was very soft. So when he tried to settle the 'copter down, he dug in and pitched over. Fuel spilled. Could have been ugly. WHy not have a few smart places to give to pilots that they can head for in case of an emergency? At least be prepared to offer best case options. I realize pilots cant entirely plan these emergencies to our satisfaction.
Apologies for reference to female voice. All i was trying to do was identify the officer on call. My bad for not remembering her name. PS My son is a pilot and i have been around aviation a little bit
Patricia October 16, 2012 at 04:55 pm
It sounds to me that all the appropriate responders did respond when the aircraft went down. I am not sure what everybody has a problem with here. Fire, EMS, and police responded..that about sums it up. What was the response time? Was it slow? or do people think emergency responders should be waiting in open fields for aircrafts to possibly crash land.

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