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TV news choppers collide while taping Arizona car chase

A pair of US TV helicopters covering a police chase collided mid-air on Friday, then crashed to the ground in a blaze of fire and smoke, killing all four people on board, police said.

Smoke billowed from the park where the crash occurred in Arizona.

Firefighters and police quickly determined there were no survivors.

Viewers who tuned in to watch the police chase live heard someone aboard one of the helicopters say, "oh geez," before seeing a jumble of images as the live broadcast broke up, US media reported.

The aftermath of the collision between the helicopters, operated by two rival local TV stations, was filmed live by a third chopper for Fox news that was also covering the police car chase.

"Oh my Gosh! Oh my God! Channel 3 and Channel 15 just had a mid-air collision! They're in the park," shouted one of the people inside the Fox helicopter.

The dead included the two pilots and the two cameramen who were shooting video of a white truck that was being pursued by police.

Phoenix resident Ian Pigg, 16, told local reporters he had heard the helicopters flying above, prompting him to go outside of his house to see what was happening.

"Then we heard the pop and the hiss. It wasn't a loud explosion. It looked like the helicopters split in two. Black smoke came straight up," he said.

The flaming debris came down in a park in a populated area, but there were no reports of casualties on the ground.

"There are no survivors," Phoenix police department spokesman Joel Tranter said.

The choppers were from local stations ABC15 and 3TV.

"We are all devastated," an anchor from the ABC affiliate Channel 15 said.

Police said an investigation was underway, and officials from the National Transportation and Safety Board were expected at the scene to help determine the cause of the crash.
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