State Police Helicopter Crash- Cambridge, Massachusetts
February 22, 1995
At 9:30 a.m., a Massachusetts State Police helicopter with two troopers and two civilians aboard took off from the Nashua Street helipad in Boston, bound for Norwood Airport. Less than three minutes later, as the helicopter, an Aerospatiale AS-350B, headed across the Charles River, it suddenly developed engine trouble. As it neared the opposite shore the, witnesses stated the main rotor stopped turning, and the aircraft plunged into the roof of the two-story Harvard Yacht Club located at 45 Memorial Drive in Cambridge. Although the helicopter was completely wrecked, there was no fire.
All four persons aboard were killed in the crash. They were identified as:
Sergeant Paul A. Perry, 39, and Sergeant James Mattaliano, 33, both assigned to the State Police Air Wing unit based in Norwood.
Arthur T. Howell, 47, of Malden, mass., and Michael J. McCarthy, 46, of Weymouth, Mass. Both were employees of AT&T. They were being ferried to Norwood to work on state police communications equipment.
For more information and photos of the officers, see www.findagrave.com.
James Mattaliano, Memorial #133231586
Paul A. Perry, Memorial #13323632
The yacht club was vacant at the time of the accident and nobody on the ground was injured.
The main cause of the crash was determined to be contaminated fuel.
Sources:
Sun-Journal, (Lewiston, ME) “Helicopter Crashes Boathouse, Killing 4”, February 23, 1995
Deseret News, (Salt Lake City), “4 Die When Copter Crashes At Harvard”, February 22, 1995
Philly.com, “4 Die As Mass. Police Helicopter Crashes Into Harvard Boathouse”, February 23, 1995
Wilmington Morning Star,(AP) “4 Killed In Massachusetts Helicopter crash”, February 23, 1995, pg. 2A
