Pilot rescued from burning helicopter that crashed in woods in New Hampshire

People who heard a helicopter crash rushed to the site to help remove the pilot from the burning aircraft in a wooded area in central New Hampshire, police said Sunday.

The pilot was the helicopter’s only occupant when it crashed into a residential property in Merrimack County, the New Hampshire State Police said in a news release. He was “conscious, breathing and alert” when authorities from various agencies arrived and transported him to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center with “serious but non life-threatening injuries,” police said.  The pilot was not identified

The Hughes TH-55 helicopter went down Saturday afternoon about 30 miles northwest of the state capital, Concord, and caused a fire that was spreading to the woods before the arrival of firefighters, police said. An initial probe into the incident suggested that the pilot lost control of the helicopter near a landing site and subsequently crashed into the wood line of the property.

A National Transportation Safety Board spokesperson said the helicopter will be moved to an offsite facility for further examination as part of its investigation. The NTSB is leading the investigation along with the Federal Aviation Administration. New Hampshire State Police have asked anyone who witnessed the crash to contact the Danbury Police Department.

The two-seater TH-55 Osage was originally used by the military as a training helicopter, taking flight for the first time in 1956, but many of them have since found their way into civilian use.