Video above: Police hold news conference on helicopter crashA helicopter pilot and a meteorologist who worked for a North Carolina television station died Tuesday following the crash of the station’s helicopter next to an interstate highway in the Charlotte area, according to the authorities and news station WBTV. WBTV broadcasters who had been reporting on the crash identified their colleagues through cracked voices on air about three hours following the deadly incident. The men were identified as meteorologist Jason Myers and pilot Chip Tayag.The crash happened near the southbound lanes off Interstate 77 just south of Charlotte. WBTV issued the following statement on its website following the crash:“The WBTV family is grieving a terrible loss. Our news helicopter Sky3 crashed mid-day Tuesday with two of our colleagues on board. Meteorologist Jason Myers and pilot Chip Tayag lost their lives. We are working to comfort their families in this difficult time. We appreciate the outpouring of support for our staff and your continued prayers for their families.” WBTV said Myers’ career took him to Raleigh, Texas and Virginia before he came back home to the Charlotte area. Myers married his childhood friend, Jillian, and the two have four children together, WBTV said. WBTV said Tayag came to the station in 2017 and had been a pilot for more than 20 years. Video below: Traffic camera video from crash scenePolice said that no vehicles were involved in the incident, while federal authorities stated that two people were onboard the aircraft.Preliminary witness accounts indicate that the pilot made some “diversionary” maneuvers and “tried to avoid injuring anyone else” and “probably saved some lives,” Johnny Jennings, chief of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, told reporters.“And if that is truly the case, then that pilot is a hero in my eyes to make sure that the safety and security of those that were driving was not in jeopardy,” Jennings said. The National Transportation Safety Board will lead an investigation into the crash along with the FAA. The FAA released the following statement:A Robinson R44 helicopter crashed near I-77 South and Nations Ford Road in Charlotte, N.C., around 12:20 local time today. Two people were on board. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate. The NTSB will be in charge of the investigation and will provide additional updates. Neither agency identifies people involved in aircraft accidents. The crash shut down the southbound lanes of the Interstate.This is a developing story. Check back for updates. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Video above: Police hold news conference on helicopter crash
A helicopter pilot and a meteorologist who worked for a North Carolina television station died Tuesday following the crash of the station’s helicopter next to an interstate highway in the Charlotte area, according to the authorities and news station WBTV.
WBTV broadcasters who had been reporting on the crash identified their colleagues through cracked voices on air about three hours following the deadly incident. The men were identified as meteorologist Jason Myers and pilot Chip Tayag.
The crash happened near the southbound lanes off Interstate 77 just south of Charlotte.
WBTV issued the following statement on its website following the crash:
“The WBTV family is grieving a terrible loss. Our news helicopter Sky3 crashed mid-day Tuesday with two of our colleagues on board. Meteorologist Jason Myers and pilot Chip Tayag lost their lives. We are working to comfort their families in this difficult time. We appreciate the outpouring of support for our staff and your continued prayers for their families.”
WBTV said Myers’ career took him to Raleigh, Texas and Virginia before he came back home to the Charlotte area. Myers married his childhood friend, Jillian, and the two have four children together, WBTV said.
WBTV said Tayag came to the station in 2017 and had been a pilot for more than 20 years.
Video below: Traffic camera video from crash scene
Police said that no vehicles were involved in the incident, while federal authorities stated that two people were onboard the aircraft.
Preliminary witness accounts indicate that the pilot made some “diversionary” maneuvers and “tried to avoid injuring anyone else” and “probably saved some lives,” Johnny Jennings, chief of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, told reporters.
“And if that is truly the case, then that pilot is a hero in my eyes to make sure that the safety and security of those that were driving was not in jeopardy,” Jennings said.
The National Transportation Safety Board will lead an investigation into the crash along with the FAA.
The FAA released the following statement:
A Robinson R44 helicopter crashed near I-77 South and Nations Ford Road in Charlotte, N.C., around 12:20 local time today. Two people were on board. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate. The NTSB will be in charge of the investigation and will provide additional updates. Neither agency identifies people involved in aircraft accidents.
The crash shut down the southbound lanes of the Interstate.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
