Posted on 02/05/2026 7:52:38 AM PST by BenLurkin
An Arizona police helicopter crashed Wednesday night while responding to an active shooting, killing two of its occupants on board.
A pilot and trooper-paramedic for the Arizona Department of Public Safety died in the tragedy in Flagstaff, Ariz., police confirmed Thursday, while video shared online captured the helicopter free-falling out of the night sky.
...
Video, seen by KPHO, captured a fire raging in a forest, and locals were urged to shelter in place.
The shooter was left with non-fatal injuries after exchanging fire with cops. They have since been arrested, cops said.
The cause of the helicopter crash has not been released and the investigation is ongoing.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
It’s a shame the article didn’t list the name or post a photo of the shooter.
Was there ever an “inactive” shooting?
“They have since”
Must have been a split personality shooter. I am POed beyond reason when I spot this BS pronoun usage.
Yes, if it is known that the shooter is gone from the scene - one way or another.
No video there
.
I don’t fly anything that needs the pilots to wear crash helmets, and the seats have inertia couplings to dampen the impact to hopefully not snap your spine.
In some States, the shooter would be charged with two counts of first degree murder.
I live on an airport and started flying many years ago with hang gliders, then ultralights, and finally general aviation aircraft. Rotorcraft of any type make me nervous. 20 years ago a guy flying around the pattern crashed a gyrocopter across the field from me. It was a very light aircraft, but like this helicopter it basically dropped out of the sky from approximately 800 feet AGL.
I was sitting at my desk in the basement of our house, and I felt the impact with my feet slightly before I heard it. It makes you realize how much energy is transferred to the ground and forms a shockwave when even a relatively light projectile auger in.
But there are many who believe that gyrocopters are saver than fixed wing aircraft. If the suffer a loss of power when flying along they like helicopters are capable of auto rotating down to the ground and making a relatively gentle landing. But because of a plethora of factors, it often does not happen in this way.
Personally, I feel much more comfortable in a fixed wing small aircraft than a small rotorcraft although statistics show that they are only slightly more dangerous. Both however are safer than motorcycles.
Was the shooter an illegal alien? (Just wondering. )
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