CHATSWORTH, Calif. — A news helicopter covering a deadly Metro bus collision for KNBC-TV and KVEA-TV crashed Tuesday evening in the Chatsworth area of Los Angeles, killing aerial journalist Eliana Moreno, pilot George Marciniw and a man on the ground, Edy Gutierrez Mejia.

Another pedestrian was hospitalized. NewsChopper4, owned and operated by Angel City Air, was providing aerial coverage for NBC4 Los Angeles and Telemundo 52 when the stations lost contact with the aircraft shortly before 7 p.m.

The helicopter went down between commercial buildings and erupted in flames, damaging vehicles and storage containers. Moreno and Marciniw were remembered by colleagues as experienced members of Southern California’s close-knit aerial-news community.

THE INVESTIGATION IS JUST BEGINNING

The National Transportation Safety Board, or NTSB, is investigating the crash and has asked witnesses to provide original video. Investigators say recordings of the aircraft’s final moments will be important evidence. A preliminary report is expected within about 30 days, while a final determination could take considerably longer.

No official cause has been established. Radio News Now will not attribute the crash to mechanical failure, pilot action or any other factor until investigators release evidence.

THE RADIO NEWS NOW QUESTION: IS IT TIME TO RETHINK THE NEWS HELICOPTER?

News helicopters have spent decades giving viewers immediate pictures of fires, pursuits, disasters, traffic failures and breaking events spread across large areas. In a city as expansive as Los Angeles, that perspective can be valuable. But the technology available to local newsrooms has changed dramatically.

Ground reporters can now transmit broadcast-quality video through bonded cellular systems. Fixed traffic cameras, public-safety cameras, satellites, mapping tools and verified eyewitness video can establish what is happening without placing a flight crew over every developing story. Properly licensed drone teams can sometimes provide aerial views while keeping journalists out of the aircraft, although drones carry their own safety, regulatory and privacy restrictions.

The question is not whether helicopters should disappear immediately. It is whether routine aerial coverage still justifies the risk when safer tools can accomplish much of the same work. News organizations should be prepared to explain who decides that a flight is necessary, what authority the pilot has to refuse an assignment, how contractors are supervised and whether competing stations can pool aerial coverage.

WHAT NEWSROOMS SHOULD REVIEW NOW

  • When aerial coverage provides unique public-service value
  • Whether a ground crew, fixed camera or licensed drone could obtain the needed pictures
  • Weather, altitude, fuel, maintenance and crew-rest standards
  • The authority of pilots and journalists to decline or end a flight
  • Contractor training, insurance and safety records
  • Whether stations can share one aircraft instead of placing several helicopters over the same event

That review should not presume what caused Tuesday’s crash. It should recognize that three people died while a local newsroom was doing its work—and ask whether today’s technology can preserve the public-service benefit while reducing the danger.

Sources: NBC Los Angeles and the Associated Press.