NTSB preliminary report details final moments of Los Angeles news helicopter crash

A news helicopter that crashed in a Los Angeles neighborhood in September was descending rapidly before it hit a metal storage container, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board.

The helicopter, an Airbus AS-350 B2 registered N358TV, went down on September 15 at about 6:55 p.m. PDT in Chatsworth, California. It was operated by Angel City Air for KNBC-TV, known locally as NBC4, on an electronic news gathering mission under Part 91. The pilot, an onboard news reporter, and one person on the ground were killed. A second person on the ground was lightly injured.

The flight had left Whiteman Airport for Chatsworth, where the crew planned to gather video of a recent fatal traffic accident. The helicopter maneuvered around the scene for about one hour and 24 minutes. A minute before the crash, its ground speed was 6 knots at an altitude of about 800 feet above ground level.

Investigators reviewed a recording recovered from the helicopter. For most of its length, the audio captured ambient helicopter noise, including the main rotor and engine, which the NTSB said was consistent with normal operations. In the final 29 seconds, the recording picked up intermittent and continuous horns the agency described as consistent with main rotor high rpm, low rotor rpm, and other aural advisories.

ADS-B data showed the helicopter descending rapidly and turning right around 6:55 p.m., reaching 38 knots of ground speed while above the accident site. Cameras on nearby buildings recorded the impact with the storage container and the fire that followed.

Weather at the site was visual meteorological conditions, with clear skies and no cloud ceilings. Visibility was 10 statute miles and the temperature was 73 degrees. The field examination found debris spread over an area, according to the preliminary report.