As the country music world continues to mourn the death of Montgomery Gentry‘s Troy Gentry in a helicopter crash on September 8, the National Transportation Safety Board has released its aviation accident preliminary report explaining the reason for the crash.
The NTSB report says: “Several minutes after takeoff, the pilot reported…that he was unable to control engine RPM with throttle inputs. He reported he could ‘roll’ the twistgrip, but that there was no corresponding change in engine RPM when he did so.”
What this means is that the pilot couldn’t control the engine speed using the throttle, due to a possible, as-yet known mechanical issue. As a result, he intentionally shut off the engine himself so he could auto-rotate the helicopter to the ground — a common emergency procedure that ended with the aircraft crashing.
The crash on Friday killed both Troy and the pilot, who were the only two on board. A memorial service will be held on Thursday at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry for Troy, who was 50 years old.