NEW CCTV SHOWS THE TERRIFYING FINAL SECONDS — NBC HELICOPTER PLUMMETS TO THE GROUND AND BURSTS INTO FLAMES

New surveillance footage has captured the final seconds of the NBC4 news helicopter crash in Los Angeles, showing the aircraft rapidly descending before disappearing behind buildings and trees — moments before flames and thick black smoke erupted from the crash site.

The devastating crash killed NBC aerial journalist Eliana Moreno, 38, pilot George Marciniw and 29-year-old Edy Gutierrez Mejia, who was on the ground when the helicopter came down in Chatsworth on Tuesday, September 15.

The newly released footage could now become a crucial piece of evidence as federal investigators work to determine what caused the helicopter to suddenly lose altitude.

THE MOMENT THE HELICOPTER PLUNGED

The helicopter was operating over Chatsworth at around 7 p.m., providing aerial coverage of an earlier deadly collision involving a Metro bus and an SUV.

A nearby surveillance camera captured the helicopter shortly before the crash.

The aircraft can be seen descending rapidly behind a commercial building and trees, with debris appearing moments later.

Seconds afterward, flames and a column of dark smoke rise from the area where the helicopter struck the ground.

Former NTSB air-safety investigator Jeff Guzzetti said the new footage could be extremely important because it provides investigators with another angle from which to analyze the aircraft’s descent.

He noted the helicopter appeared to have a very high rate of descent.

THE LAST MOMENTS WERE ALSO CAPTURED ON LIVE VIDEO

The surveillance footage is not the only evidence investigators have.

The helicopter was broadcasting live while Moreno and Marciniw were covering the earlier crash.

In the final moments of that recording, Moreno can be heard reacting as the helicopter begins to lose altitude.

She asks the pilot, “You can’t pull up?”

The recording then ends.

NTSB Investigator-in-Charge Fabian Salazar said the live footage could be among the most important pieces of evidence recovered so far.

Investigators heard sounds consistent with the engine changing speed, along with warning tones that may have been advisories directed at the pilot.

WAS THERE A LOSS OF POWER?

Aviation experts are examining the possibility that the helicopter experienced a sudden power or mechanical problem.

Guzzetti told NBC that the footage appeared consistent with a significant change occurring during the flight and said investigators would need to determine why the engine may have lost power.

Possible explanations include fuel-system problems or a mechanical malfunction.

However, investigators have not yet determined that engine failure caused the crash.

The NTSB and FAA are examining the wreckage, video recordings, cockpit audio and other evidence before reaching any conclusion.

NBC Los Angeles reported that investigators are also analyzing the aircraft’s final movements and available maintenance information.

THREE PEOPLE LOST THEIR LIVES

The two people aboard the helicopter were Eliana Moreno and George Marciniw.

Moreno, 38, was an experienced aerial journalist who had worked with Angel City Air and covered breaking news across Southern California.

She had joined the helicopter team in 2010 and became familiar to viewers through her work for NBC Los Angeles and Telemundo 52.

Known online as “Eli in the heli,” she frequently documented breaking news from above Los Angeles, including wildfires, police pursuits and major emergencies.

Marciniw was a veteran Southern California pilot who graduated from Burbank High School in 1974.

He was believed to have more than 30 years of flight experience and had logged thousands of hours in the air. He and Moreno had regularly worked together since 2023.

The third victim, Edy Gutierrez Mejia, 29, was on the ground when the helicopter crashed.

Mejia was from Cuilapa, Guatemala, and had arrived in Los Angeles earlier that day for a short business trip.

His family and friends have since begun mourning his sudden loss and working to return his remains to Guatemala.

A TRAGEDY THAT BEGAN WHILE COVERING ANOTHER TRAGEDY

The helicopter had been dispatched to cover an earlier collision involving a Metro bus and an SUV.

While the NBC crew was providing aerial coverage, the helicopter itself crashed between commercial buildings in the Chatsworth area.

The incident transformed a breaking-news assignment into another devastating story — this time involving the journalists who had been sent to cover the first tragedy.

Flowers and other tributes have since appeared near the crash site and at locations associated with the NewsChopper4 team.

INVESTIGATORS ARE NOW PIEcing TOGETHER THE FINAL SECONDS

The NTSB and FAA are leading the investigation.

Investigators are examining the helicopter wreckage, the newly released surveillance footage, the live broadcast recording, cockpit sounds, maintenance information and witness accounts.

The new CCTV footage gives investigators an additional view of the aircraft’s descent, while the live recording provides potentially important clues about what was happening inside the helicopter immediately before the crash.

For now, one question remains unanswered:

What caused the helicopter to suddenly lose altitude?

The footage may help investigators reconstruct those final seconds — but the official cause of the crash has not yet been determined.

And for the families, friends and colleagues of Eliana Moreno, George Marciniw and Edy Gutierrez Mejia, the investigation comes alongside an even more painful reality: three lives were lost in a matter of seconds.