NBC helicopter audio captured tense final moments before fatal Chatsworth crash

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: A tragic NBC News helicopter crash in Los Angeles on Tuesday, September 15, killed pilot George Marciniw, aerial photojournalist Eliana Moreno, and a person on the ground. Audio from the aircraft captured a tense exchange shortly before it went down in Chatsworth.

The helicopter had been covering the aftermath of a traffic accident involving a city bus and an SUV when it suddenly ran into trouble. A voice onboard can be heard asking the pilot, “What? You can’t pull up?”

NBC News helicopter crashes while covering Los Angeles traffic accident

The NewsChopper 4 helicopter was in Chatsworth in the San Fernando Valley, filming the wreckage of the earlier bus crash.

That accident had left two people dead and six injured.

Because the helicopter was sending live video back to NBC4, the station received transmissions when the aircraft ran into trouble.

It later crashed between two commercial buildings near Lurline Avenue and Nordhoff Street.

NBC4 anchor Colleen Williams confirmed the station had lost contact with its crew before the crash was officially confirmed.

“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,” Williams said.

The Los Angeles Police Department later placed the crash time at 6:58 pm.

George Marciniw and Eliana Moreno identified among victims

NBC4 identified Marciniw and Moreno as two of those killed. Both were from Southern California and were familiar faces to viewers of NBC4 and Telemundo 52.

NBC Los Angeles and Telemundo 52 said in a joint statement, “We are deeply saddened to share that a helicopter providing aerial news coverage for NBC4 and Telemundo 52 was involved in a fatal accident in Los Angeles on Tuesday evening.”

“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the families, friends and colleagues of those who lost their lives,” the statement added.

The third person killed was outside in a parking lot beside one of the commercial buildings, according to LAFD spokesman Captain Branden Silverman.

Eyewitness describes helicopter’s final moments

Eyewitness Zareh Sevanesian said he noticed something was wrong as the helicopter descended.

“As we were driving, I looked over to my left,” he said. “I saw the helicopter – something didn’t look right. And I told my wife, ‘That helicopter is not flying right.’”

After the crash, Sevanesian described the fire as “one of the most violent fires I had ever seen.” His wife, Allyona Sevanesian, said, “It was very terrifying and sad for everyone.”

Veteran chopper pilot Zoey Tur also shared footage and said listeners could hear the “low rotor RPM annunciator horn” and the engine rev down.

Tur described it as an engine failure and said there was a slow response into autorotation by the pilot in command. The cause has not been officially determined.

NBC4 mourns the loss of its ‘team in the sky’

NBC4 reporter Lauren Coronado said the station was still trying to process the tragedy.

“I think a lot of us are still trying to process what happened, this terrible loss,” Coronado said while reporting near the crash site.

The station paid tribute to Marciniw and Moreno as “the team in the sky.” Moreno often posted videos from her work and was described as being in awe of the views she saw while flying.

Pilot Esteban Jimenez, who said he had known Marciniw since the 1990s and had been his instructor, remembered speaking with him just days before the crash.

“I just talked to him on Sunday. We were talking about the aviation business and retiring,” Jimenez said.

The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the crash. Officials have not yet determined what caused the helicopter to go down.