A veteran helicopter pilot was the only one aboard when, authorities said, his helicopter struck a 150-foot-tall tower in back of a ham radio operator's home in Myakka City, Florida. The 63-year-old pilot had just completed a route of spraying for mosquito control shortly before 9 p.m. when he was killed in the Oct. 15th accident in Manatee County, A spokesman for the county sheriff's office told local media that firefighters pulled the pilot from the wreckage as it burned. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The guyed tower - the tallest of three on the property - collapsed.
The Wireless Estimator, a website for the wireless infrastructure industry, identified the property owner as Daniel Street, K1TO, who is also the owner of an antenna installation company, A1 Tower Service. The website noted that towers standing under 200 feet are not required by the Federal Aviation Administration to be lit or to be registered with the FCC's Antenna Structure Registration System. The Wireless Estimator said that according to the public record, the towers were in compliance with those rules.
The National Transportation Safety Board was investigating the incident and typically issues a preliminary report within about 30 days after a crash.
