The pilot who crashed a helicopter in Huntington Beach near a waterfront hotel on Saturday, injuring five people including himself, was known for leaning into thrills during some of his flights, according to a review of his social media.
Videos shared on pilot Eric Nixon’s Instagram page showed several low-altitude maneuvers, including some that appear to come very close to vehicles and buildings. In one that appeared to promote Saturday’s helicopter landing party for the Cars ’n Copters on the Coast event in the Orange County city, one of Nixon’s choppers swooped in close to the rooftop lounge at Hilton’s Waterfront Beach Resort — near where he later crashed.
Five people were injured when Nixon’s Bell helicopter — the type made popular by the 1980s television drama “Airwolf” — crashed in Huntington Beach Saturday afternoon as the city readied for the car and helicopter show.
Frightening videos captured the crash, showing the helicopter spinning out of control before crashing onto palm trees and the stairwell of a pedestrian bridge connecting a beach parking lot on Pacific Coast Highway to the Hyatt Regency resort.
Some videos appeared to show the helicopter’s tail rotor fly off moments before the crash in front of hundreds of spectators. People can be heard in the video screaming and are seen scrambling to evade debris.
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Two people were pulled from the aircraft, and three people, including a child, were injured on the ground, police said.
The helicopter was being piloted by owner Nixon, who was bringing the 1980 Bell 222 to appear in the annual Cars ’n Copters show Sunday featuring exotic cars along with aircraft from private owners, law enforcement and the military. Helicopters flew in Saturday for a “landing party” event.
Despite the crash, the show went on Sunday, appearing to draw hundreds to the flashy car and helicopter event. Organizers posted online that they were “sending our prayers out to all involved in the unfortunate incident.”
Nixon’s father-in-law, Jerry Miller, told the Orange County Register on Saturday night that Nixon was “in the hospital with some broken ribs, crushed vertebrae and several bruises.”
In addition to Nixon and another person in the helicopter with him, a child and two adults were injured on the ground. All five were hospitalized, but no official information was released about their injuries as of early Sunday afternoon.
Nixon’s Instagram account said he and his passenger were safe after the crash.
A GoFundMe account, which could not be independently verified, identified the youngest victim and said the boy was in a hospital with a collapsed lung and brain bleed.
In images obtained by KTLA, bystanders can be seen pulling a child from beneath the wreckage and whisking the boy away. The crash was “like something in a nightmare,” witness Kurt Johnston told KTLA.
The Huntington Beach police and fire departments responded Saturday to a helicopter crash at Pacific Coast Highway and Huntington Street.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
One pilot told NBC 4 that Nixon made a quick decision on Saturday.
“He chose to sacrifice the helicopter and put it on top of the palm trees, therefore avoiding cars and people that were there,” Esteban Jimenez said.
Nixon’s Bell 222 departed from Redlands Municipal Airport, according to the Flight Safety Foundation.
A cosmetically modified Bell 222 was the centerpiece of “Airwolf,” which revolved around a high-technology attack helicopter, code-named Airwolf, and its crew.
The crash has been reported to the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board, police said.
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