4 killed as news copters collide over Phoenix

Investigators worked into the night Friday sifting through the wreckage of two news helicopters that collided in the air above a central Phoenix park, killing all four aboard.

GRAPHIC: Timeline and map of accident

GRAPHIC: View the helicopters' specifications

VIDEO: Eyewitnesses recount midair collision

VIDEO: Firefighters give condolences at Scottsdale Airpark

VIDEO: Two helicopters collide in midair

VIDEO: Footage from ABC15 helicopter involved in crash

View slideshow.

Safety is more important than ‘the shot’ for air crews

ABC 15 pilot flew with dog, played in band

Photographer killed in crash had ties to channels 3 and 15

The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration both sent specially trained accident investigators from Washington, D.C., to head up the search for clues. They were expected to arrive by early Saturday. The FAA had one person on the ground Friday night.

The two helicopters collided above Steele Indian School Park at Central Avenue and Indian School Road about 12:45 p.m. Friday.

Killed in the crash were ABC 15 pilot Craig Smith and photographer Rick Krolak and Channel 3 pilot Scott Bowerbank and photographer Jim Cox.

The bodies were being removed from the wreckage about 8 p.m. Friday.

Five news helicopters and one from the Phoenix Police Department converged on the park as they tracked the police chase of a man who was reported to have stolen a truck near 7th and Jefferson streets shortly after noon.

Smith, the Channel 15 pilot, was broadcasting the blow-by-blow of the chase when he suddenly said “oh jeez,” a video of his final moments broadcast by the station shows. Sounds like metal crashing could be heard immediately afterwards, then the video signal ended.

Rick Gotchie, who was working on the light-rail project adjacent to the park, said he looked up and saw the two helicopters moments before the crash. One of them was hovering and the other banked toward it, he said.

“I kept saying ‘go lower,’” Gotchie said. “And at about that time, they hit each other.”

Gotchie said he ran to the fiery wreckage.

“Nobody got out, so I fell to my knees,” he said.

Another witness, Jason Sarget, said he saw the two news helicopters flying unusually close to each other when their tail rotors touched.

“They both broke off and (the helicopters) both went down,” Sarget said. “It sounded like a huge bomb went off.”

Phoenix police officers rushed to the wreckage in a vain attempt to rescue survivors, said Matt Walters, who was driving in the area when he saw the collision.

“There were some officers who tried to run into the thing, but there was no way you could get in there,” Walters said.

Walters said it appeared one of the helicopters hit the underside of the other, which was hovering over the scene.

After colliding, one of the helicopters plunged nose first into the ground while the other spiraled down, according to Frank Bartholic of Phoenix, who was sitting at a nearby bus stop.

Friday night Phoenix police searched the park under the glare of floodlights, marking bits of debris and preserving the scene for federal investigators. Divers may be sent into a small pond at the park to search for parts of the helicopters, said Sgt. Joel Tranter, Phoenix police spokesman.

The transportation safety board will take the lead in the federal investigation of the crash, said Ian Gregor, spokesman for the FAA in Los Angeles. Both agencies will conduct independent investigations that will include inspecting the wreckage, and interviewing the other helicopter pilots and witnesses on the ground.

Gregor said news helicopters converging at an event communicate with each other on their own radio channel to coordinate safety. The FAA does not monitor that channel, but will get a tape of any audio or video recordings that might be available, he said.

One FAA investigator based in Scottsdale was at the scene Friday, and others were being sent from Washington, Gregor said.

Peter Knudson, a spokesman for the transportation board, said a five-person team of investigators was sent to the crash site from Washington and Los Angeles. They will spend three to five days collecting information about the crash and should issue a preliminary report by mid-August, Knudson said.

Aside from eye witnesses to the crash, investigators also will talk to family, friends and co-workers of the pilots to determine what they did for the last few days, Knudson said.

The final report from the NTSB will probably take about a year to complete, he said. Gregor said he could not estimate how long it would take for the FAA to reach a conclusion.

The tragedy began with a 911 call to police at 12:06 p.m. about a stolen utility truck in downtown Phoenix. The chase began after officers spotted the truck, which rammed a police car and speeded north.

Police put down “stop sticks,” which punctured three of the truck’s tires. The suspect abandoned the disabled vehicle and stole another near Second Street and Clarendon Avenue. Police surrounded the man, but were unable to stop him.

That was about the time the helicopters photographing the scene from their perch above the Indian School park collided.

The suspect continued to elude police, leading them on a 14-mile chase before holing up inside a home near 87th Avenue and West Encanto Boulevard in the west Valley. After a 45-minute standoff, police sent in dogs and the SWAT team about 2:15 p.m., Tranter said. The suspect, identified as Christopher Jones, 23, was shot several times with a gun that fires plastic pellets. He was taken to a west Valley hospital and treated for several dog bites.

Jones was booked late Friday on multiple charges of vehicle theft and aggravated assault on a police officer.

Phoenix police Chief Jack Harris said there is a possibility Jones could also face charges related to the deaths of the news crews. A person who commits certain felonies can be charged with murder if a death results from the commission of the crime, under Arizona law.

“I can’t say that he’s going to be charged with the mishap yet,” Tranter said.

Police will forward their recommendations to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office once the investigation is concluded, Tranter said. The county attorney’s office would not comment on possible charges.

Reporters, photographers and technicians from both news stations who were at the crash site Friday said they had been instructed not to speak to other members of the media about the accident or the men who were killed.

“This is a very sad day and our thoughts and prayers are with the families involved,” said ABC 15 general manager Janice Todd in a written statement.

At Channel 3, flags flew at half-staff and the lobby doors were locked after the crash.

Anchor Patti Kirkpatrick fought emotions as she covered the developing news story.

“These are folks that we knew very well and we care about them and they’re gone. So, it’s just heartbreaking for all of us here at 3 TV, because we know these folks,” she said.

Gov. Janet Napolitano issued a statement Friday afternoon about the incident.

“On behalf of the state of Arizona, I offer my condolences to the families and coworkers of these four professionals,” she said in the prepared statement. “They delivered expert coverage of the news to the businesses and homes of Arizonans on a daily basis. We are indebted to their public service. They will surely be missed.”

- Tribune writers Paul Giblin, Jill Redhage, Jason Massad and Ryan Gabrielson contributed to this story.

Craig Smith

If you witnessed this accident, please contact the Tribune at (480) 898-6514 or via e-mail at newstips@evtrib.com.