Pa. Troopers in Helicopter Injured in Fatal Plane Collision During Training
What to Know
- A small Cessna 150 collided with a Pennsylvania State Police helicopter during a training exercise at Carlisle Regional Airport on Wednesday evening, killing the plane's pilot and injuring two state police pilots.
- Investigators said the helicopter was hovering a few feet above the ground when the Cessna, approaching to land, suddenly veered right and struck the helicopter's tail rotor before both aircraft crashed.
- The two troopers, Cpl. Bryce J. Corman and Trooper Jason Mills, survived and are expected to recover, while the FAA and NTSB are investigating the cause of the collision.
Both pilots, Cpl. Bryce J. Corman and Trooper Jason Mills, were initially trapped in the helicopter, Bivens said. Corman pushed out a window and then assisted Mills, who had more serious injuries.
“While injured [they] are going to be OK,” said Gov. Josh Shapiro, who praised the rapid response of emergency responders and medical professionals. “Tonight could have been much worse.”
Bivens said the Cessna pilot was killed in the crash.
“The one known occupant of the Cessna did not survive,” said Bivens. The pilot remains unidentified while officials notify family members of the death.
Ashley Ludwig, a trauma doctor at Penn State Hershey Medical Center, told reporters one of the injured troopers is possibly going to be discharged from the hospital Wednesday night while the other trooper is being admitted for monitoring.
Bivens said detailed investigations will take place and that the FAA arrived at the scene Wednesday night.
Witnesses who live at the townhome development adjacent to the airport said they heard a loud bang and saw plumes of smoke at the time of the crash.
Neighbors Patrick Brown and Lloyd Slusser said they squeezed past a fence and ran into the field to help. They said they saw two troopers in the helicopter and one person in the plane.
Leading up to the crash, the two men said they saw the state police helicopter flying low, doing maneuvers, which the men said is common at the airport.
Laura Southerland and her 11-year-old son were training at the Gracie Barra Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, located about a 1,000 feet from the runway. Her son was in the parking lot at the time and said he saw the helicopter flying low and then heard a “boom.”
“It’s really common to have like a lot of traffic at this airport, like even a couple weeks ago when the president was here,” said Southerland, referring to President Trump’s visit to the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle.
“So it’s like a great airport with a lot of traffic, but it’s never had a problem.”
Southerland said she wondered how the two aircraft could have collided.
“Right away we were saying like, even though it’s like a small place and we’re not in like a big city, but they had immediate responders within minutes so that’s fortunate that we have that,” she said. “But [I’m] not sure how the crash could have happened.”
EMS crews were seen loading a patient onto a Life Lion medical helicopter that is based at the airport, witnesses said. A second Life Lion arrived around 7:30 p.m. to retrieve another victim.
Bivens said there is no air traffic control tower at the airport but noted the Cessna and helicopter communicated via a radio frequency used at the airport.
Visibility was very good at the airport at the time of the incident.
The airspace around Carlisle Airport was closed, dispatchers said.
Shapiro at about 8:30 p.m. said he was headed to Carlisle after being briefed on the crash.
“Lori and I are praying hard and we ask all of our fellow Pennsylvanians to join us,” Shapiro wrote on social media.
“The NTSB will lead the investigation and provide all updates,” the FAA said.
Staff writer Tirzah Christopher contributed to this article.
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