"The fact that the Airborne Law Enforcement Accreditation Commission implemented all of the NTSB's recommendations in just six months is to be highly commended," Hersman said. On June 9, 2009, about 2135 mountain daylight time, an Agusta S.p.A. A-109E helicopter, N606SP, crashed following visual flight rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions near Santa Fe, New Mexico. The commercial pilot and one passenger were killed, a highway patrol officer who was acting as a spotter during the accident flight was seriously injured.  

The entire aircraft was substantially damaged. The helicopter was registered to the New Mexico Department of Public Safety and operated by the New Mexico State Police (NMSP) on a public search and rescue. The helicopter departed its home base at Santa Fe Municipal Airport, Santa Fe, New Mexico, in visual meteorological conditions, instrument meteorological conditions prevailed when the helicopter departed the remote landing site about 2132.  

The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this accident to be: - The pilot's decision to take off from a remote, mountainous landing site in dark (moonless) night, windy, instrument meteorological conditions. Contributing to the accident were an organizational culture that prioritized mission execution over aviation safety and the pilot's fatigue, self-imposed pressure to conduct the flight, and situational stress. Also contributing to the accident were deficiencies in the NMSP aviation section's safety-related policies, including lack of a requirement for a risk assessment at any point during the mission; inadequate pilot staffing; lack of an effective fatigue management program for pilots; and inadequate procedures and equipment to ensure effective communication between airborne and ground personnel during search and rescue missions.