ASHLAND, Mass. — A Hopkinton man is thankful to be alive after crash landing his ultralight helicopter into the Ashland Reservoir.
David Diana took off from Marlborough airport and was headed to fly over his home in Hopkinton when he noticed that his engine was running hot.
He performed what is called an auto rotation and was able to slow the descent into the reservoir and free himself from the harness as the helicopter sank.
"It was a little freaky. I practice auto rotations all the time but I’ve never actually had to do one where I went into the water,” he said.
MSP receiving reports of helicopter into the water at Ashland Reservoir. No details yet. Ground units, Air Wing responding. Developing.
— Mass State Police (@MassStatePolice) August 24, 2016
Initial reports: @AshlandPolice on scene of helicopter into Ashland Reservoir. MSP assets enroute. Developing.
— Mass State Police (@MassStatePolice) August 24, 2016
Diana was rescued by a boater nearby within minutes and brought safely to shore, but his helicopter wasn't rescued for about six hours.
SkyFox was over the scene, live video of the search was streamed on the FOX25 Facebook page.
Cox Media Group
