One Person Dead, Two Troopers Injured In US After Plane Collides With Police Helicopter | Sahara Reporters

The crash involved a Cessna 150 and a Bell 407 helicopter, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

One person was killed and two Pennsylvania State Police troopers were injured after a small plane collided with a state police helicopter during a training exercise at Carlisle Airport in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States, on Wednesday evening, the authorities said.

The crash involved a Cessna 150 and a Bell 407 helicopter, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The Cessna had only one person aboard, while the helicopter was carrying two pilots who were members of the Pennsylvania State Police’s elite aviation unit.

Acting Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner, Lt. Col. George Bivens, said the Cessna pilot was killed in the collision, while the two helicopter pilots sustained injuries but were expected to survive.

Pennsylvania Governor, Josh Shapiro, confirmed the condition of the two troopers during a news conference on Wednesday night, saying they were injured but were expected to recover.

According to Bivens, the state police helicopter, which is based out of Harrisburg, was conducting routine training exercises at Carlisle Airport when the incident occurred shortly before 7pm local time.

He said the helicopter was hovering several feet above the ground in a grassy area adjacent to a runway when the Cessna approached the area.

Bivens said the small aircraft “approached from behind” and lined up with one of the runways near the grassy area where the helicopter was operating.

“As that Cessna came down along that runway, for an unknown reason, it veered hard to the right at the last moment,” Bivens said. “It struck the helicopter from the rear. The pilots would not have been able to even see that airplane approaching them.”

However, the Pennsylvania State Police later issued a statement saying the collision occurred while the helicopter was “on the ground.”

The National Transportation Safety Board initially described the incident as “a midair collision,” as authorities began investigating the circumstances surrounding the crash.

The collision caused significant disruption at the airport as emergency responders rushed to the scene and attended to the occupants of both aircraft.

Eyewitness Lloyd Slusser described the moment of the crash as a particularly loud and shocking incident.

“What is sticking in my mind, it was the crash, the the loud sounds more than anything, just because it was so loud, it was kind of shocking,” Slusser said.

The pilot of the Cessna died at the scene, while both helicopter pilots were initially trapped inside the damaged aircraft.

Bivens said one of the helicopter pilots was able to push out a window, allowing both pilots to escape from the wreckage.

Slusser, who witnessed the aftermath, said one of the helicopter pilots appeared to be in worse condition than the other.

“The pilot was in a little bit worse shape,” Slusser said. “He kind of immediately went down. The first responders attended to him. I kind of stayed with the copilot.”

The two injured helicopter pilots were subsequently transported to Penn State Hershey Medical Center for treatment.

Dr. Ashley Ludwig, the hospital’s trauma director, said during the briefing that both pilots sustained minor injuries and were in stable condition.

Authorities have begun investigations into the circumstances that led to the collision, including why the Cessna veered sharply to the right as it approached the runway.

The conflicting initial descriptions of whether the helicopter was hovering above the ground or was “on the ground” are also expected to be clarified as investigators examine the sequence of events.

The investigation will involve aviation authorities and is expected to focus on the movements of both aircraft, the airport’s operating conditions and the circumstances surrounding the Cessna’s final approach before it struck the police helicopter.

The incident has also drawn attention to the risks associated with aircraft operations during training exercises, particularly at airports where multiple aircraft may be operating in close proximity.

While the two state police pilots survived with minor injuries, the crash resulted in the death of the lone Cessna occupant and left authorities working to establish exactly how the collision occurred.