Pilot critically injured in Bryan Co. chopper crash

WADE, Okla. (KXII) - “Any landing a pilot can walk away from or survive from is a good landing,” said Oklahoma Highway Patrol captain Scott Hampton.

Hampton said about 9:30 a.m. they received a 911 call that an aircraft crashed in a very rural area of Southern Bryan County.

“It’s basically cattle trails getting out there, no county roads leading to this location,” Capt. Hampton said.

Drone footage shows a Bryan County emergency vehicle driving toward what appears to be the crash site.

“We believe they were out there crop dusting.”

The helicopter suddenly had an in-flight emergency so the pilot had to land immediately.

While the FAA investigates the cause of the crash, “the pilot had made some statements… we think it’s going to be mechanical in nature.”

Capt. Hampton said all hands were on deck to find the pilot, “with aircraft collisions they’re not always accessible by road so they tried multiple roads to get to that location before finding the one that would get them there.”

The pilot whose name won’t be released until his family is notified was air-flighted to a Dallas area hospital where at last word he was in critical but stable condition.

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