Helicopter crash at Rusk County Airport leaves couple injured

Published 4:20 pm Monday, June 6, 2022

A couple was injured in a helicopter crash at the Rusk County Airport in Henderson on Monday morning, officials said.

The crash, first reported on social media by the Rusk County Office of Emergency Management, happened inside the perimeters of the airport, where the helicopter took off before crashing on one of the runways just before 10 a.m., according to a statement released by Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Jean Dark. 

The two people involved in the crash were the pilot Russell Moore and his wife Ginger Moore, Rusk County Sheriff John Wayne Valdez said. Ginger was transported via ambulance for treatment of injuries that officials said were minor, and Russell was quickly airlifted to a Tyler hospital. Russell’s condition was not known as of 3:30 p.m. Monday.

Preliminary information shows the helicopter took off from the airport heading southeast, Dark said. Ginger Moore told DPS troopers that she knew something was wrong with the chopper as soon as she and her husband took off.

“… As they took off, she noticed that something was not right with the helicopter,” Dark said.

During the moment of the crash, the chopper pitched hard downward striking the left skid on the runway, Dark said.

Due to her injuries being minor, Ginger was able to help her husband out of the cockpit after the crash.

The helicopter was a  Robinson R44 that visited the airport once a week in the last month for training purposes.. 

The crash caused a closure of the 12/30 runaway. Valdez said after speaking with airport managers, that runway will likely remain closed for another day. The primary 17/35 runway and remainder of the airfield remain open for regular air traffic.

“… It has some damages on the place where they crashed so it will be closed until those are fixed,” said Alexa McAnally, airport manager. “Fortunately the main runway is still open because it is far from the other runway.”

McAnally said first responders were quick on the scene Monday morning. Just minutes after the collapse, DPS troopers responded to the call and rushed to the site of the crash. 

“Police and health did a very good job in handling the situation, it was a very quick response,” McAnally said.

As of 3:20 p.m., the Rusk County Office of Emergency Management said the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board had taken over investigating the crash scene and all local responders had cleared from the airport.

The Federal Aviation Administration has been conducting investigations to determine what caused the crash and if it was subject to wind or was a malfunction of the helicopter.

“The FAA will go over everyone’s statements and once the helicopter is examined they’ll release it so it can be moved from the runway,” McAnally said.

The investigation will most likely take all of Monday and could last through Tuesday.