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A pilot was killed and two troopers were injured on Aug. 19 when a Pennsylvania State Police helicopter and a small airplane collided in midair at Carlisle Airport, officials said. The collision occurred at around 6:52 p.m. local time at the airport in Cumberland County, about 130 miles northwest of Philadelphia, according to Lt. Col. George Bivens, acting commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police. The helicopter crew was conducting routine training and was hovering several feet above a grassy area adjacent to a runway when the crash happened.Bivens said a Cessna 150, a two-seat aircraft, approached from behind and aligned with one of the runways near the helicopter."For an unknown reason, it veered hard to the right at the last moment," Bivens said during a news conference. "It struck the helicopter from the rear. The pilots would not have been able to even see that airplane approaching them."According to Bivens, the airplane hit the helicopter’s tail rotor before impacting the main rotor system, triggering what he described as a "very violent crash." The plane crashed to the ground a short distance away and broke apart, Bivens added.The two troopers aboard the helicopter were initially trapped inside the aircraft. Bivens said one trooper was able to push out a window and help free the second trooper. Other people at the airport quickly responded and assisted at the scene.The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash.Pilot killed, 2 Pennsylvania State Police troopers in stable conditionThe pilot of the Cessna was killed in the incident, according to officials. Authorities believe there was only one person aboard the airplane, but Bivens said that remains part of the investigation.Dr. Ashley Ludwig, trauma medical director at the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center in central Pennsylvania, said both troopers were transported to the hospital."We received two patients that came in as Level 1 trauma activations," Ludwig said at the news conference. "Both of them, thankfully, came out with just minor injuries and are stable."Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro identified the two troopers as Cpl. Bryce Corman and Trooper Jason Mills, who he described as "members of the elite aviation unit" with the state police."Tonight could have been much worse. Tonight could have been much more tragic for our state police family," Shapiro said.Pennsylvania airport does not have an air traffic control towerBivens noted that Carlisle Airport does not have an air traffic control tower. Instead, pilots coordinate aircraft movements using a shared radio frequency."There was some communication on that frequency," he said. "We'll have to, as part of the investigation, sort all of that out."
