A 21-year-old flight instructor from Butte apparently committed suicide Monday by crashing his company's helicopter into a Helena hayfield, but only after placing a call to the air traffic control tower and informing them of his intentions.

The man, identified as Patrick Pfeifhofer, of Italy, was working as a flight instructor for Silver State Helicopters in Butte on a visa.

The helicopter, a Robinson R-44, crashed off Lincoln Road about three miles north of the Helena Regional Airport at about 12:17 a.m.

Lewis and Clark CountyCoroner Mickey Nelson said it appeared that Pfeifhofer intended to kill himself based on a conversation that took place moments before the crash between him and air traffic controllers.

"It appears he didn't want to hurt anyone," Nelson said. "He stated that in one of his conversations. He said he loved America and that he didn't want to hurt anyone. It seems likely at this point that it was a suicide."

Jerry Airola, president of Silver State Helicopters in Nevada, said Pfeifhofer's actions had left many saddened and shocked.

"It devastated a lot of people," Airola said. "We did a stand down today. We're not doing any flying. We'll bring in counselors for those who need to talk about it."

Airola said Pfeifhofer was an Italian citizen who first began working for Silver State in Colorado.

He transferred to the Butte office several months ago and had become a proficient instructor, Airola said.

"It was his birthday yesterday, and he went to a Super Bowl party where apparently he got in a fight with his girlfriend," Airola said. "They broke up and he went to the airport and took one of the helicopters."

Airola said Pfeifhofer attempted to call his girlfriend on his cell phone, along with his sister in Italy.

Later, Airola said, Pfeifhofer radioed Helena's air traffic control tower and announced his intentions to commit suicide by crashing the helicopter into the ground.

"He said 'I love America and I don't want to see anyone get hurt,'" Airola said. "As an employee, he had access to the helicopters there in Butte. I think he knew what he was going to do before he even took off because he moved some of the newer aircraft out of the way to get to the oldest one."

Airola said the 1999-model aircraft was valued at around $300,000, much less than the company's newer models.

Mike Fergus, a public affairs specialist with the Northwest Mountain Region of the Federal Aviation Administration, confirmed earlier in the day that the aircraft was in fact registered to Silver State Helicopters.

The company is based in Nevada and leases an aviation hangar at the Bert Mooney Airport in Butte where it offers the helicopter flight school where Pfeifhofer worked as an instructor.

"The helicopter crashed under unknown circumstances 10 miles north of Helena," Fergus said Monday morning, declining to comment on the crash. "It was destroyed by fire with one person on board."

Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Cheryl Liedle said the first emergency call rang in at 12:17 a.m. reporting a fire in the Helena Valley.

It wasn't until deputies arrived at the scene did they realize a helicopter had crashed about 200 yards from the three houses off Linclon Road.

Liedle said the crash sparked a fire that was quickly extinguished by the West Valley and Lewis and Clark volunteer fire departments.

Others in the valley reported seeing a small fireball in the area of the crash. One man said his son watched the accident unfold.

"There wasn't much left of the helicopter," Liedle said.

Jerry Shepherd, chief of the West Valley volunteer fire department, said 22 volunteers firefighters responded to the crash.

"We were paged out for a possible airplane down and on fire," Shepherd said. "There was just a small grass fire and part of the helicopter was on fire."

Fergus said the National Transportation Safety Board had dispatched an investigator to the scene from Seattle to examine the crash.

The FAA, he added, would examine any flight anomalies, including the pilot's rating and his medical history.

Silver State Helicopters employs 450 people in 22 locations and owns about 180 helicopters, the company said.

Coroner Nelson said Pfeifhofer's body would be sent to the State Crime Lab in Missoula for an autopsy.

"We're tying to get the family notified over in Italy," Nelson said. "They do it a little different there than we do it here. This is definitely a different situation."

Reporter Martin Kidston can be reached at 447-4086, or at mkidston@helenair.com.