FAA Investigates Yorktown Helicopter Crash

Update: Officials began dismantling the helicopter before it was removed from the property.

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Federal Aviation Administration officials are continuing to investigate the cause of the helicopter crash at Kitchawan Farm in Yorktown Friday evening. 

The two helicopter occupants walked off with no injuries when the helicopter made a hard landing at a field and flipped over on its side. The two men refused medical attention, according to Yorktown police. The crash was reported at 6:05 p.m.

The vintage a 1955 Sikorsky S-55B helicopter - occupied by pilot Hale Gurland, 59, and his passenger Richard Sherryl, 56, took off from Newton, NJ and was headed to an airshow in Bridgeport, CT, Yorktown police said. 

The extent of damage to the helicopter is still under investigation, according to FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen. The National Transportation Safety Board will determine the probable causes of accident. That investigation could take up to a year, but a preliminary report will be posted at ntsb.gov in a week or two, Bergen told Patch on Saturday.

Preliminary reports showed a malfunctioning fuel pump might have been the cause of the crash, but Bergen said that would change depending on the results of the investigation. 

The helicopter was made in 1955 and was registered to Sparta Rotors in Newton, NJ, according to FAA data. According to the company's website, it specializes in aerial photography, surveying, fire control and search and rescue operations.