Chopper Picks Up Lost Hiker, Then Disappears

[Matt Molnar]

Search on for missing chopper in New Mexico

(CNN) -- Rescuers trekking across a New Mexico mountain in search of a missing state police helicopter early Wednesday could be a mile away from the aircraft, a state official told CNN.
Members of a rescue team gather at a command center early Wednesday in the hunt for the missing copter.

A team of about 25 volunteers endured bitter cold, heavy snowfall and poor visibility as they scoured the wilderness for the helicopter -- missing shortly after it picked up a lost hiker in the Santa Fe National Forest, said Peter Olson, a spokesman for the New Mexico Department of Public Safety.

At one point, searchers thought they were within a half-mile of a transponder signal. Olson said searchers now believe the signal from the craft indicates it could be a mile away from them. [Full Article]

[Gerard]

Last report is they found the Spotter but pilot and rescued passenger dead.
Ship was an Agusta 109E they've been flying for about 5 years now.
Sad.