Two troopers injured after plane collides with Pennsylvania State Police helicopter in Carlisle
A routine training flight turned into a deadly midair collision in Pennsylvania on Wednesday evening, leaving a small-plane pilot dead and two state troopers...
A routine training flight turned into a deadly midair collision in Pennsylvania on Wednesday evening, leaving a small-plane pilot dead and two state troopers injured near Carlisle Regional Airport. The crash has now drawn federal investigators and shaken a rural airport that sits about 110 kilometers northwest of Philadelphia.
Officials said a Cessna 150 struck a Pennsylvania State Police Bell 407 helicopter shortly before 7 p.m. The helicopter was in a grassy area conducting training when the aircraft hit it from behind. One person died. Two troopers were hurt. Fast response, officials said, made the difference.
Victim identified as Hershey doctor
The Cumberland County Coroner’s Office identified the dead pilot as Paul Sokoloski, 57, of Hershey. Authorities said he was the only person aboard the plane. An autopsy is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 25.
Penn State Health said Sokoloski was a “valued member” of its emergency medicine team. Officials also said he had spent nearly three decades in emergency medicine and had previously served as an assistant professor at the Penn State College of Medicine.
Briefly, his background stood out. Sokoloski was also a certified flight instructor, according to the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge, Aaron McCarter.
Investigators look for why the plane veered
NTSB and other officials are now trying to piece together why the Cessna moved off course during landing. Bivens said the plane veered right at the last moment and hit the helicopter from the rear. McCarter said there is no immediate explanation.
“Many of you have all seen the videos that have turned up online. It’s very dramatic,” McCarter said Thursday. “That shows the collision. We see the outcome, but we want to understand why it happened.”
Investigators plan to examine the wreckage, the aircraft and the environment at the time of the crash, along with the actions of the pilots. The airport remained under scrutiny Thursday as officials worked through the scene.
Troopers expected to recover
Governor Josh Shapiro and Pennsylvania Police Acting Commissioner Lt. Col. George Bivens both addressed the crash and the emergency response. Shapiro credited responders for moving quickly after the collision.
The injured troopers were taken for care and are expected to recover, officials said. Their names were not included in the source material.
The helicopter crash happened while the Bell 407 was being used in a training exercise. Federal aviation officials and state police are now focused on how a landing aircraft and a hovering police helicopter ended up in the same airspace, with the answer still unclear.
