Barry Meier wrote this excellent overview of the medical helicopter industry, which followed two excellent pieces by John Dougherty. From Meier’s piece:

The fatal collision Sunday between two medical helicopters in Arizona was the sixth crash involving the emergency helicopters since May, making the last two months one of the deadliest periods in the history of the fast-growing industry.Sixteen people have died this year in seven crashes, which involved eight helicopters, according to federal data. Thirteen of the deaths have come since May.

About 750 medical helicopters are operating in this country, about twice the number flying a decade ago. Medical helicopters were once operated mostly by hospitals, but in recent years private companies, including some that are publicly traded, have come to dominate the industry.

The chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, Mark Rosenker, said the agency was greatly concerned about the spate of crashes. The board began to investigate the industry after a rash of accidents in 2004 and 2005.

In a report in 2006, it found that operators had failed to develop comprehensive flight risk programs, and that pilots often did not have adequate information about bad weather they might have encountered or equipment to alert them to dangerous terrain.

The board called for stricter flight rules and improved accident-avoidance equipment, among other recommendations.

The Federal Aviation Administration accepted all of the board’s recommendations, Mr. Rosenker said, but has put only some of them into effect.

“The latest spate of accidents has given the board concern that the F.A.A. may not be moving as quickly as necessary,” Mr. Rosenker said in a telephone interview on Monday evening.

Medical Helicopter Crashes Stir Concern

And links to Mr. Dougherty’s pieces:Crashes of Medical

Aircraft Examined , and 6 Killed and 3 Are Injured as Copters Collide

. The Times doesn’t hyperlink Mr. Dougherty’s byline; perhaps this is the equivalent of being a “made man” in certain organizations with which we’re familiar.