Full Breakdown
Tragic Los Angeles News Helicopter Crash While Covering a Bus Collision
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
On September 15, 2026, a news helicopter operated by Angel City Air and used by NBC Los Angeles (NBC 4) and Telemundo 52 crashed in the Chatsworth neighborhood of the San Fernando Valley. The aircraft went down just before 7 p.m. while hovering over a fatal Metro-bus-and-SUV collision that had occurred earlier that evening. The crash killed three people: aerial reporter Eliana Moreno, pilot George Marciniw, and pedestrian Edy Gutierrez Mejia. Two others were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
Background & Context
Los Angeles TV stations routinely deploy helicopters for live aerial coverage. On the afternoon of September 15, an SUV struck a Metro bus on Nordhoff Street, killing two and injuring six. NBC 4’s “NewsChopper 4” was on scene when it lost lift and impacted a parking lot near a storage facility.
Timeline
- ? 5 p.m. – SUV collides with Metro bus; two fatalities.
- 5:20 p.m. – NBC 4’s helicopter launches.
- ? 6:58 p.m. – Helicopter loses altitude, strikes the ground, and bursts into flames.
- Just before 7 p.m. – Anchor Colleen Williams announces loss of contact and confirms the crash.
- Night of September 15 – LAFD extinguishes fire; Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom issue statements.
- September 16 – NTSB and FAA announce investigation; cause remains undetermined.
Data & Statistics
- Fatalities: 3 (Moreno, Marciniw, Mejia).
- Injured: 2 (bystanders).
- Fire-fighting response: > 70 firefighters; fire destroyed four cars and two storage containers.
- Aircraft: Eurocopter AS 350 B2 (registered N358TV).
- Historical context: At least eight fatal news-helicopter crashes in the United States since 2000, resulting in 16 deaths.
Official Statements & Responses
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration will lead a joint investigation, with investigators arriving on September 16.
On-the-Ground Reports
NBC 4 reporter Robert Kovacik arrived moments after the impact, hearing “a very, very loud crash” and seeing a plume of smoke. LAFD Captain Branden Silverman said the aircraft was “pretty well destroyed” and that investigators would need to sift through the rubble to determine the exact number of occupants.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Early reports varied on how many people were aboard and whether the third victim was a passenger or a pedestrian. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner later identified the ground victim as Edy Gutierrez Mejia, 29. The precise cause—engine failure, loss of rotor RPM, or another factor—remains undetermined.
Verbatim Quotes
- “We knew it was a news chopper, we knew we’d lost contact with our people out there, and we’ve just received the confirmation that, in fact, NewsChopper 4 went down just before 7 o’clock tonight in Chatsworth,” — Colleen Williams, anchor
- “It just has all the earmarks of a potential loss of engine power and a dangerous decrease in the main rotor speed,” — Jeff Guzzetti, aviation safety expert
- “This is a very, very, very tragic day in Los Angeles,” — Karen Bass, mayor
- “From the helicopter itself, it’s pretty well destroyed,” — Branden Silverman, LAFD captain