Overview
- Two occupants were rescued from the helicopter and three pedestrians on the ground were injured, with all five people taken to hospitals and no fatalities reported.
- The crash occurred around 2 p.m. near Pacific Coast Highway by the Hyatt Regency and a beachfront parking area in one of the city’s busiest corridors.
- Bystander videos show the helicopter flying erratically and descending in a spiral before striking palm trees and a nearby structure, and authorities are gathering those recordings as evidence.
- The FAA and NTSB have been notified and are conducting an on‑site investigation, with witness accounts of a possible tail‑rotor failure treated as unconfirmed.
- City officials said the aircraft was linked to the Cars ’N Copters event planned for Sunday, and the scene was secured and closed off as crews removed the wreckage.