Sheriff’s Department Pilot Injured in Helicopter Crash

A San Diego County Sheriff’s Department pilot, practicing helicopter maneuvers Monday morning, was injured after crashing at the west end of Gillespie Field in El Cajon, narrowly escaping the explosion that followed and demolished his copter, sheriff’s deputies said.

Sgt. Robert Curry, 39, was flying about 11 a.m. when his helicopter exploded after he crashed in a practice field, said Sheriff’s Deputy John A. Scheck. Curry was qualified to fly as a student helicopter pilot.

Curry, a member of the Sheriff Department’s ASTREA (Air Support to Regional Enforcement Agencies) unit for two years, was practicing landing on slopes and doing touch-and-go maneuvers to prepare for his commercial helicopter license, Scheck said.

‘A Big Ball of Fire’

Scheck said it was not known what caused the crash. “As the helicopter hit, witnesses reported that it was engulfed in flames . . . a big ball of fire.”

Curry escaped with minor injuries, Scheck said.

He was taken to Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa, where he was in good condition Monday, a hospital spokesman said.

Lt. George Kneeshaw, ASTREA commander, said Curry “is a certified flight instructor for both single- and multi-engine (airplanes) and a . . . qualified airline pilot. He had 100 hours of (helicopter) instruction before flying by himself. He finished that and was working on his solo time.”

2 Helicopters Left

The ASTREA unit trains with Bell-47 helicopters, used during World War II. The crash leaves the unit with only two practice craft.

Despite its age, Kneeshaw said, the helicopter was in good working condition. “It belonged to the Imperial County Sheriff’s Department and we bought it from them. . . . It was just overhauled,” Kneeshaw said.

The ASTREA unit, created in 1971, has 60,000 hours of flying time over the past 11 years without an accident, Scheck said. The unit uses both helicopters and airplanes, and last had an accident in November, 1977. There were no major injuries in that crash.