This is a list of news aircraft accidents and incidents.
Accidents occurring while gathering news Accident dateLocationTelevision station DescriptionFatalitiesInjuries Summary 2026-09-15 Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, United States KNBC/KVEA The helicopter "NewsChopper4" reporting on an earlier bus crash in Chatsworth crashed in the 9100 block of North Mason Avenue. 3 2 Under investigation 2023-12-19 Washington Township, Burlington County, New Jersey, United States WPVI-TV The helicopter "Chopper 6" was on its way back from covering a story on the Jersey Shore, when it crashed in South Jersey. 2 0 Under investigation 2018-01-23 Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil Rede Globo A Robinson R44 crashed into the sea in Pina beach, in heavy rain. Three people were on the helicopter. The pilot and one passenger died on the spot, and another occupant died in the hospital. 3 0 2017-09-16 Carrizozo, New Mexico, United States KRQE-TV Helicopter crashed near Carrizozo, New Mexico. Bob Martin, veteran journalist and pilot was killed 1 0 2014-05-21 Beverly, Massachusetts, United States WHDH-TV A Bell 206L-4 was departing Beverly Airport in Beverly MA when an engine failure occurred. 0 0 After auto-rotating back to the airport, the helicopter broke the tail off during the flare maneuver. 2014-03-18 Seattle, Washington, United States KOMO-TV A Eurocopter AS350 B2 serving as a backup helicopter while the station's primary Bell 407 was getting new equipment crashed near Seattle Center when departing the KOMO-TV Helipad after refueling. 2 1 As seen from a Skycam, the helicopter's tail rotor failed when taking off from the KOMO-TV building's helipad. It then impacted the ground resulting in a fire. 2012-08-27 Los Angeles, California, United States KTLA-TV While covering a shooting, an AS350 B2 began emitting smoke from the engine which was spotted by another news helicopter covering the same story. 0 0 An oil line got clogged and started putting oil into hot parts of the engine resulting in the large amount of smoke. 2011-08-18 Lake Eyre, Australia Australian Broadcasting Corporation A Eurocopter AS355 helicopter crashed and killed the pilot, reporter and cameraman whilst on location. 3 0 "... the pilot probably became spatially disoriented." 2010-11-12 Pacoima, California, United States KCBS-TV/KCAL-TV An AS350-B2 experienced an engine failure when taking off to cover a news story. The tail came off after an auto-rotation. 0 0 As part of the emergency landing procedure, the pilot flared the chopper (nose up) to slow it down and hit the tail boom against the runway, resulting in the tail boom coming off 2010-06-24 Clinton Township, Michigan, United States WXYZ-TV/WDIV-TV/WJBK-TV While following a procession for a fallen soldier, the chopper's crew heard two loud bangs from the engine compartment followed by a master alarm buzzer. 0 0 The chopper auto-rotated to the ground without any problems and was repaired. 2010-06-18 Buenos Aires, Argentina C5N An MBB Bo 105 helicopter crashed and killed the pilot and camera operator while filming a car accident. 2 0 2010-02-10 São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil RecordTV One Eurocopter AS350-BA baptized "Águia Dourada" was covering the traffic in the city, when it fell in the track of the Jockey Club. The pilot died and the cameraman was injured. 1 1 A fail on the tail rotor would have been the cause of the accident. 2009-12-16 Montreal, Quebec, Canada CFTM-TV A Robinson R44 traffic helicopter, while filming over Champlain Bridge, crashed in a ditch near Autoroute 10 while trying to make an emergency landing on a nearby heliport. 0 2 2009-08-05 Mont-Laurier, Quebec, Canada CFCF-TV An Enstrom 28 helicopter crashed and burst into flames while filming the aftermath of a tornado 2 0 2008-11-11 West Palm Beach, Florida, United States WPEC A Bell 206B made an emergency landing after losing power. The tail boom of the helicopter was severed in the accident. Both the pilot and traffic reporter on board escaped serious injury. 0 2 "A loss of engine power due to an undertorqued air line fitting to the fuel control." 2008-10-13 Montgomery County, TX, United States KTRK-TV While traveling to the scene of a shooting, SkyEye-HD, a Bell 206L-4 crashed into the heavily wooded W.G. Jones State Forest in southern Montgomery County. 2 0 Preliminary reports indicate the aircraft lost engine power while traveling over a heavily wooded area. The aircraft then lost altitude and impacted the trees and ground, which resulted in a fire.2008-06-30 Oakland, California, United States Metro Traffic Networks While engaged in traffic reporting, a Cessna 172M airplane developed engine trouble and made an emergency landing. 0 2 Loss of engine power due to oil starvation from the improper installation of engine oil pump. 2007-07-30 Grand Prairie, TX, United States KDFW-TV "Sky 4" experienced a mechanical failure as it traveled from an 18-wheeler accident to a breaking news event. This failure forced the pilot to make an emergency landing in a heavily wooded area, which resulted in major damage to the aircraft. 0 1 The loss of engine power as result of the failure of one or more of the compressor blades for the 5th stage compressor for undetermined reasons. A contributing factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the pilot to execute a successful autorotation. 2007-07-27 Phoenix, Arizona, United States KNXV-TV and KTVK Two Eurocopter AS350-B2 news helicopters from local television stations KNXV-TV and KTVK are involved in a mid-air collision and crash while covering a car chase in downtown Phoenix. The crash occurred over Steel Indian School Park. 4 0 "Both pilots' failure to see and avoid the other helicopter. Contributing to this failure was the pilots' responsibility to perform reporting and visual tracking duties to support their station's ENG operation. Contributing to the accident was the lack of formal procedures for Phoenix-area ENG pilots to follow regarding the conduct of these operations." 2007-07-20 Sand Springs, Oklahoma, United States KOTV While performing low altitude flybys during a commercial shoot, a Bell 206B-3 helicopter's main rotor blade struck the satellite dish atop a news truck. 0 1 "The pilot's failure to maintain clearance with ground obstacles, which resulted in a blade strike. A contributing factor was the low altitude selected by the pilot." 2006-07-12 Taos, New Mexico, United States KOB-TV The helicopter landed nose first and rolled over while obtaining video of a search and rescue operation 0 0 the loss of tail rotor effectiveness during landing, and the pilot's delayed remedial action to counteract a right yaw 2006-06-26 Chino Hills, California, United States contractor The pilot heard a loud bang, landed the helicopter in a state park to investigate, upon taking off the helicopter rolled to the left and impacted the ground. 0 2 undetermined 2004-05-04 Brooklyn, New York, United States WNBC-TV A Eurocopter AS-350BA helicopter crash landed onto an apartment building rooftop after losing hydraulic pressure 0 3 Improper installation of the hydraulic pump drive belt which caused hydraulic system failure. 2004-03-07 Nagiso, Nagano, Japan Shin-etsu Broadcasting(SBC) Television news helicopter covering a car accident report. A Eurocopter AS-355 BA helicopter contacted a high voltage power line. Helicopter crashed on the river side, wrapped in flames. Pilot, mechanic and 2 station staff were killed. 4 0 ARAIC reports. 2003-05-08 Aurora, Colorado, United States KMGH-TV A Bell 206-L4 helicopter crashed after losing power during a simulated emergency landing at the Aurora Reservoir. 0 1 "Inadequate inflight planning/decision by the flight crew and the check pilot's failure to initiate remedial action in a timely manner". 2001-12-12 Vernon, Wisconsin, United States WISN-TV After covering a fire, the pilot of a Robinson R44 helicopter was flying back to airport in low visibility when the aircraft struck power lines and crashed on a highway. 1 2 "The pilot's continued flight into adverse weather and not maintaining altitude/clearance from the static line during cruise flight. Factors were the static wire, the darkness of night, the low ceiling, and the vehicle." 2000-06-23 Springdale, Ohio, United States WLW A 1989 Enstrom 280FX runs out of fuel while observing traffic along I-275. The pilot attempted to land on the roadway, but one skid landed in the grassy median, causing the helicopter to roll over. 0 0 Inadequate preflight and subsequent failure to monitor fuel supply 2000-03-26 Van Nuys, California, United States KTTV While covering a night time event, pilot radio'd hydraulic failure to other news helicopters in the area and opted to return to base rather than land at a closer airport. 0 2 hydraulic pressure loss 2000-03-06 Dallas, North Carolina, United States WBTV While covering a news event, the helicopter experienced several unanticipated right yaw excursions 0 0 Improper use of flight controls during an emergency landing 2000-03-03 South Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States WTVJ "Sky 6" A McDonnell Douglas HU-600N crashes after pitching downward and then pulled up into a steep ascent. Prior to the crash the pilot states over the radio to a nearby inflight helicopter "Watch this." 2 0 "The pilot's ostentatious display and in-flight decision to perform an abrupt low altitude pitch up maneuver (aerobatic flight). This resulted in the main rotor blades colliding with and separating the tail boom assembly while maneuvering, and the helicopters subsequent in-flight collision with terrain." 1999-11-17 Seattle, Washington, United States KIRO-TV helicopter collides with another (non-news) aircraft on a news gathering flight 0 0 failure to maintain separation 1999-06-25 Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, United States WPDE-TV While filming, a Boeing HU-369 helicopter crashes into a marsh. 0 3 "An inflight loss of control due to loss of tail rotor effectiveness as a result of the pilot's inadequate compensation for the winds and improper weather evaluation." 1998-12-03 Passaic, United States WNBC-TV A Eurocopter EC 135-P1 helicopter crashes into the Passaic River after a dual engine failure 0 2 "The pilot's failure to maintain proper rotor rpm and his improper in flight decision to enter autorotation due to his lack of knowledge of the power plant controls. Factors in the accident were the night conditions and the pilot's improper decision to fly through wake turbulence." 1998-10-13 Bowie, Maryland, United States Metro Traffic While engaged in traffic reporting, a Cessna R172K crashed into a house and burst into flames. Heavy fog was reported at the time of the accident. 1 1 "Pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed resulted in an inadvertent stall. Pilot's poor in-flight planning/decision and his continued VFR flight into instrument meteorological conditions". 1997 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States WPVI-TV An AS350-BA "Chopper 6" was taking off to shoot aerials for the morning news when crashed when only a few feet in the air. 0 2 Hydraulic failure 1996-04-27 Nagano, Nagano, Japan Nagano Broadcasting Systems(NBS) and TV Shinshu(TSB) Two local television stations chartered a helicopter for a river bed fire. Two helicopters collided midair and crashed into the river bed. NBS's AS355 F1 had one pilot and one cameraman. TSB's AS350 B had one boarding pilot and one mechanic and 2 reporters. All passengers were killed. 6 0 ARAIC reports. 1994-01-13 Lakeland, Florida, United States WESH-TV While covering a circus train derailment, an Aerospatiale AS-350 helicopter makes an emergency landing and flips on its side at a ball field. The pilot and photographer on board were injured. 0 2 Pilot's failure to follow emergency procedure for an engine governor malfunction. 1993-08-18 Seattle, Washington, United States KIRO (AM) After experiencing a complete loss of power, pilot Paul Brendle attempts to glide his Enstrom F-28C traffic helicopter to a landing on the beach at Sewa