Kreindler Investigating MD Helicopters MD369FF Fatal Crash Near Phoenix, Arizona
January 5, 2026
What Happened
On Friday, January 2, 2026, at approximately 11am local time, an MD Helicopters MD369FF private helicopter crashed following a collision with a recreational highline (or slackline), which seven days earlier had been strung 600 feet above ground and spanning a half-mile length in Telegraph Canyon near Superior Arizona, approximately 65 miles east of Phoenix. All four victims in the helicopter were from Oregon. According to news reports, the victims were pilot David McCarty and his nieces Rachel McCarty, Faith McCarty and Katelyn Heideman. David was a well-known and experienced helicopter pilot and the owner of Columbia Basin Helicopters located in La Grande, Oregon. Tragically, David McCarty was getting married later that day and his nieces were in Arizona for the wedding.
The MD Helicopters MD369FF aircraft departed from Pegasus Airpark south of Queen Creek in Maricopa County near Superior, Arizona. The Oregonian reported that the International Slackline Association released a statement that they had informed the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) about the temporary installation of the slackline. Media reports indicate that a Notice to Airmen, or Air Missions (NOTAM) of the presence of the slackline had been filed with the nearby Superior Municipal Airport, a lightly used airport that supports the area’s tourism and mining industries.
The helicopter, FAA Registry Number N3502P, was manufactured in 2023. The MD Helicopters chopper was a rotorcraft helicopter with a Rolls-Royce 250-C30 Turboshaft engine. It was registered to FB Helicopters LLC in Aventura, Florida. MD Helicopters was previously known as McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Systems prior to the merger of McDonnell Douglas and The Boeing Company in 1997.
In the Media
Preliminary Investigation
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA ) are investigating the cause of the crash of the MD369FF helicopter.
Kreindler Helicopter Crash Cases
Kreindler’s long history of litigating helicopter crash cases includes:
- Heli-Ski Crash, President & CEO of Walt Disney Co., Ruby Mountains, NV
- Llewellyn Glacier Crash, Bell 206B Helicopter, in British Columbia, Canada
- Airbus/Eurocopter AS350B2 “Doors Off” Helicopter Crash in East River, NY
- Bell 206 Helicopter Crash Near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
- Royal Netherlands Air Force Boeing Apache
- Bell 412 Helicopter Crash in Jamaica Bay, New York
- Sikorsky MH-53E Crash Near Naval Air Station in Sigonella, Italy
- Eurocopter AS350B2 Helicopter Crash Near Meadview, Arizona
- Eurocopter Aerospatiale Helicopter Crash Near Iao Valley, Kahului, Hawaii
- Eurocopter BK-117 Colgate-Palmolive Executive, East River, NY
- Bell 206B3 Helicopter Crash in Lamoille, Nevada
About Kreindler
Kreindler is the preeminent aviation accident law firm in the world. Our attorneys have been appointed leading counsel in nearly every major commercial airline disaster case in the U.S. and abroad, including 2025’s tragic collision near Washington D.C., between an Army helicopter and an American Eagle passenger jet. Kreindler represents 34 of the 67 victims of that crash. In 2024, the firm was named Transportation Law Firm of the Year by the National Law Journal. Kreindler’s aviation practice is led by 3 attorneys who are also commercial-rated, veteran military pilots from the Army, Navy and Marines. Kreindler’s aviation accident practice has achieved an unmatched record of success representing people globally who have been injured or lost family members in international and domestic airline disasters. The firm maintains offices in New York, Boston and Los Angeles.