Grand Canyon helicopter accident leaves pilot dead
Grand Canyon helicopter accident: A 2014 Eurocopter AS350 helicopter rolled over while the pilot was moving it. There were no passengers on board, but the pilot was killed.
Visitors admire the view from the South Rim at the Grand Canyon, Arizona, June 12, 2009.
Melanie Stetson Freeman/The Christian Science Monitor/File
MEAD, Ariz.
The pilot who died in a helicopter accident at the Grand Canyon in northwestern Arizona on Sunday worked for a popular tour company.
The pilot, who has not been identified, was killed after the 2014 Eurocopter AS350 rolled over onto its side while the pilot was moving it. There were no passengers on board.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with our colleague's family and loved ones," Brenda Halvorson, president and CEO of Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters, said in a statement. "This is a difficult time for our Papillon family. We are fully cooperating with the NTSB investigation."
The accident occurred late Sunday afternoon near the Grand Canyon West airport, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said.
The airport is operated by the Hualapai (WAHL'-uh-peye) Indian Tribe. A tribal spokesman referred questions to the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating.
Further information on the accident was not immediately available.
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