The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a 4-day public hearing on the safety of helicopter emergency medical services (EMS) operations beginning on Tuesday, February 3, 2009, at 9:00 a.m. The hearing will be open to the public and will take place in the Board Room and Conference Center at 429 L'Enfant Plaza, S.W., Washington, D.C. This hearing will also be telecast on the Board’s website (www.ntsb.gov). In addition, the Board is requesting submissions from the EMS community of materials related to aviation safety to be part of a public docket used in support of the hearing.

The goal of the upcoming hearing is for the Safety Board to learn more about helicopter EMS operations so that it can better evaluate the factors that lead to accidents. The Board will invite expert witnesses to provide sworn testimony. The majority of these witnesses will participate as part of small panels addressing particular safety issues. Additionally, several organizations will be granted “party status” to the hearing so that they may question the witnesses directly. The witnesses and parties will represent a range of EMS-related communities, including pilots, medical personnel, managers, and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officials who provide oversight.

NTSB General Information:
Press Releases and Advisories
NTSB Investigative Process

Hearing Information:

February 3-6, 2009

• Biographies for the Board of Inquiry and the Technical Panel

Past Press Releases:

• November 10, 2008