News Choppers

[Mike Braun]

Perhaps this is slightly off-topic, but in the aftermath of a devastating tornado that hit Waco, Texas, on May 11, 1953, KWTX radio station manager M.N. "Buddy" Bostick flew his P-51 Mustang over the downtown area describing the destruction he could see live on the air.

According to Bostick, his chief engineer figured out how to rig up the airplane so Bostick could broadcast as he flew above the city. For several days afterward, KWTX canceled commercial programming and broadcast messages from people looking for missing relatives.

 

[recto101]

Didn't NewsCopters reach its peak when Bob Tur of KNX 1070 aired the LA Riots Live also Northridge Quake and the OJ Simpson Chase cam into play? I also do know that KGO's sky7 as far back as 1989 was the station that showed the Cypress freeway collapse and Marina District on Fire when they were relaying pictures of the Loma Prieta Quake to the Nation via ABC News.

 

[Poledo]

If I remember correctly, back in the early days, the Fox News Channel was an interesting alternative to CNN because they constantly broke in with police car chase scenes... mostly from Southern California, Miami and the Dallas, Texas areas. I remember seeing a whole lot of news choppers covering fleeing vehicles and sometimes structure fires and police standoffs that would typically be "local news" on national cable TV... they had so many breaking reports that I thought the Fox News cable network might evolve into something like a TMZ format centered around live and same day recordings of crime and tragedy from Chopper cams. (I never expected Fox to overtake CNN, I didn't think CNN could fall off the top of the news mountain. I think Turner still owned CNN back then.) Now you just don't see very many stories involving chopper cam video or reporting, at least on national news networks.

When I started this thread I was only thinking about local broadcasters breaking news stories first, I had completely forgotten how much "local news" made it to the national level due to good pilots and cameramen flying around. It was always dramatic when the newsroom lost the live feed from their chopper. They always had to speculate that something "could" have happened to the chopper.

Would this decline be because the number of news cameras in the air has significantly decreased since "O.J." or do people just not find it interesting anymore? Or could there be other reasons I'm not seeing?

 

[arnoldevns]

Helicopters for TV news gathering has become a dying trend. The 2007 Phoenix crash and the financial collapse of 2008 resulted in stations making huge cutbacks. Insurance rates went way up after the Phoenix crash and fuel costs soared that same year. (before dropping the next year) Stations had to decide if they wanted to lay off 30-40% of their newsroom employees or cut out the chopper. In most cases the chopper went away or got put into a pool situation. The 2008 financial collapse cut ad revenue at most stations by 40-60%. Again, managers had to find ways to cut costs and the chopper was an easy one to get rid of. Pool arrangements were a way to dramatically cut the cost while still having the chopper available.

My hope is that in the next few years stations will find a way to start using drone helicopters for news gathering. That way they could have the chopper up without having a person in the air. The FAA is currently working on rules for this sort of thing. The cost of these things is a lot less than a chopper with a pilot.

 

[recto101]

If I remember correctly, back in the early days, the Fox News Channel was an interesting alternative to CNN because they constantly broke in with police car chase scenes... mostly from Southern California, Miami and the Dallas, Texas areas. I remember seeing a whole lot of news choppers covering fleeing vehicles and sometimes structure fires and police standoffs that would typically be "local news" on national cable TV... they had so many breaking reports that I thought the Fox News cable network might evolve into something like a TMZ format centered around live and same day recordings of crime and tragedy from Chopper cams. (I never expected Fox to overtake CNN, I didn't think CNN could fall off the top of the news mountain. I think Turner still owned CNN back then.) Now you just don't see very many stories involving chopper cam video or reporting, at least on national news networks.

When I started this thread I was only thinking about local broadcasters breaking news stories first, I had completely forgotten how much "local news" made it to the national level due to good pilots and cameramen flying around. It was always dramatic when the newsroom lost the live feed from their chopper. They always had to speculate that something "could" have happened to the chopper.

Would this decline be because the number of news cameras in the air has significantly decreased since "O.J." or do people just not find it interesting anymore? Or could there be other reasons I'm not seeing?

True I remember back in the late 1990's Fox News Channel and MSNBC tended to air chases from the KTTV and KNBC Feeds back then. HLN in some cases might do this now.

 

[jfrancispastirchak]

My hope is that in the next few years stations will find a way to start using drone helicopters for news gathering. That way they could have the chopper up without having a person in the air. The FAA is currently working on rules for this sort of thing. The cost of these things is a lot less than a chopper with a pilot.

My concern is that unmanned "drone" choppers would do for TV news gathering and traffic reporting what automation did for the quality of Radio. Still, I see your point about the potential for cost savings. Business is business.

 

[arnoldevns]

Keep in mind, stations could launch a drone faster than getting a chopper crew in the air. You would still need someone to fly it remotely.

 

[recto101]

Helicopters for TV news gathering has become a dying trend. The 2007 Phoenix crash and the financial collapse of 2008 resulted in stations making huge cutbacks. Insurance rates went way up after the Phoenix crash and fuel costs soared that same year. (before dropping the next year) Stations had to decide if they wanted to lay off 30-40% of their newsroom employees or cut out the chopper. In most cases the chopper went away or got put into a pool situation. The 2008 financial collapse cut ad revenue at most stations by 40-60%. Again, managers had to find ways to cut costs and the chopper was an easy one to get rid of. Pool arrangements were a way to dramatically cut the cost while still having the chopper available.

My hope is that in the next few years stations will find a way to start using drone helicopters for news gathering. That way they could have the chopper up without having a person in the air. The FAA is currently working on rules for this sort of thing. The cost of these things is a lot less than a chopper with a pilot.

I do remember that KGO-AM used to have Jetcopter 810 for Traffic news back in 2008-2009 until budget cuts at Citadel Radio came into play. But I do know that there was another Newscopter that crashed and it was in 1986 where a WNBC 660AM staff member Jane Dornacker died in that incident it was mentioned in the KYUU memories site. but back then the drone was not discovered yet.

 

[LKellerIII]

Helicopters for TV news gathering has become a dying trend. The 2007 Phoenix crash and the financial collapse of 2008 resulted in stations making huge cutbacks. Insurance rates went way up after the Phoenix crash and fuel costs soared that same year. (before dropping the next year) Stations had to decide if they wanted to lay off 30-40% of their newsroom employees or cut out the chopper. In most cases the chopper went away or got put into a pool situation. The 2008 financial collapse cut ad revenue at most stations by 40-60%. Again, managers had to find ways to cut costs and the chopper was an easy one to get rid of. Pool arrangements were a way to dramatically cut the cost while still having the chopper available.

My hope is that in the next few years stations will find a way to start using drone helicopters for news gathering. That way they could have the chopper up without having a person in the air. The FAA is currently working on rules for this sort of thing. The cost of these things is a lot less than a chopper with a pilot.

I do remember that KGO-AM used to have Jetcopter 810 for Traffic news back in 2008-2009 until budget cuts at Citadel Radio came into play. But I do know that there was another Newscopter that crashed and it was in 1986 where a WNBC 660AM staff member Jane Dornacker died in that incident it was mentioned in the KYUU memories site. but back then the drone was not discovered yet.

You're talking radio on a TV thread, but I feel I have to make some corrections....correctotions?

1. KGO had the Jet Copter, and a regular copter before that - going back decades - probably to the 60s. . When I got to the Bay Area in 73, KGO had a copter and an airplane. One of their cute names for it was "The Hurleybird" because the pilot (and owner, I think) was a guy named Lou Hurley.

2. Even though the crash was in NYC, Dornaker was widely loved and eulogized here in the Bay Area. Aside from stage work and comedy she had done in the Bay Area, she also rode a traffic copter for 610/KFRC. I don't recall that she worked for KYUU, but it's possible, I guess. It was widely reported that Dr. Don Rose bankrolled a big charity celebration of Jane's life and donated money himself to a scholarship fund for Dornaker's daughter, who had previously lost her father, and was now an orphan.

3. Drones were not "discovered." They were invented.

 

[recto101]

Helicopters for TV news gathering has become a dying trend. The 2007 Phoenix crash and the financial collapse of 2008 resulted in stations making huge cutbacks. Insurance rates went way up after the Phoenix crash and fuel costs soared that same year. (before dropping the next year) Stations had to decide if they wanted to lay off 30-40% of their newsroom employees or cut out the chopper. In most cases the chopper went away or got put into a pool situation. The 2008 financial collapse cut ad revenue at most stations by 40-60%. Again, managers had to find ways to cut costs and the chopper was an easy one to get rid of. Pool arrangements were a way to dramatically cut the cost while still having the chopper available.

My hope is that in the next few years stations will find a way to start using drone helicopters for news gathering. That way they could have the chopper up without having a person in the air. The FAA is currently working on rules for this sort of thing. The cost of these things is a lot less than a chopper with a pilot.

I do remember that KGO-AM used to have Jetcopter 810 for Traffic news back in 2008-2009 until budget cuts at Citadel Radio came into play. But I do know that there was another Newscopter that crashed and it was in 1986 where a WNBC 660AM staff member Jane Dornacker died in that incident it was mentioned in the KYUU memories site. but back then the drone was not discovered yet.

You're talking radio on a TV thread, but I feel I have to make some corrections....correctotions?

1. KGO had the Jet Copter, and a regular copter before that - going back decades - probably to the 60s. . When I got to the Bay Area in 73, KGO had a copter and an airplane. One of their cute names for it was "The Hurleybird" because the pilot (and owner, I think) was a guy named Lou Hurley.

2. Even though the crash was in NYC, Dornaker was widely loved and eulogized here in the Bay Area. Aside from stage work and comedy she had done in the Bay Area, she also rode a traffic copter for 610/KFRC. I don't recall that she worked for KYUU, but it's possible, I guess. It was widely reported that Dr. Don Rose bankrolled a big charity celebration of Jane's life and donated money himself to a scholarship fund for Dornaker's daughter, who had previously lost her father, and was now an orphan.

3. Drones were not "discovered." They were invented.

Thanks for the corrections

 

[Poledo]

Down here on the beaches just south of Mobile, AL we have so many "skycams" on the roofs of hotels and condos that the news guys can zoom in on traffic (automobile and boat), drownings/ water rescues, and (in the distance) smoke from fires (structure and forest). If they doubled or tripled the number of rooftop cameras and finished upgrading all of them to HD we would have little use for a helicopter now-a-days. If the TV stations also had access to the cameras the Police have installed on "the wrong side of the tracks, the ones on very tall light poles placed in areas of drug dealing and prostitution," they would have even more sources of news video.

... so... the point, could we be seeing choppers replaced by dozens of fixed cameras attached to T-1 or ISDN lines? I understand London, England has an ungodly number of police security cameras monitored 24/7. Does the news over there use video from these fixed cameras on TV?

 

[jfrancispastirchak]

Helicopters for TV news gathering has become a dying trend. The 2007 Phoenix crash and the financial collapse of 2008 resulted in stations making huge cutbacks. Insurance rates went way up after the Phoenix crash and fuel costs soared that same year. (before dropping the next year) Stations had to decide if they wanted to lay off 30-40% of their newsroom employees or cut out the chopper. In most cases the chopper went away or got put into a pool situation. The 2008 financial collapse cut ad revenue at most stations by 40-60%. Again, managers had to find ways to cut costs and the chopper was an easy one to get rid of. Pool arrangements were a way to dramatically cut the cost while still having the chopper available.

My hope is that in the next few years stations will find a way to start using drone helicopters for news gathering. That way they could have the chopper up without having a person in the air. The FAA is currently working on rules for this sort of thing. The cost of these things is a lot less than a chopper with a pilot.

I do remember that KGO-AM used to have Jetcopter 810 for Traffic news back in 2008-2009 until budget cuts at Citadel Radio came into play. But I do know that there was another Newscopter that crashed and it was in 1986 where a WNBC 660AM staff member Jane Dornacker died in that incident it was mentioned in the KYUU memories site. but back then the drone was not discovered yet.

I was listening the day Jane Dornacker died. Believe this happened during Allen Colmes show. The on-air staff struggled, but succeeded in keeping the show going. Very professional.

 

[TheRob]

Today, WCAU-TV in Philadelphia announced it is withdrawing from its pool agreement, and getting its own helicopter by year's end.

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/489391-WCAU_Exits_LNS_Content_Share.php?rssid=20068

 

[formeraa]

In the mid-80's, KIRO in Seattle rocked Western Washington with the introduction of the KIRO News JET!! Alas, it was short-lived -- lasting just a few years.

 

[vchimpanzee]

If they doubled or tripled the number of rooftop cameras and finished upgrading all of them to HD we would have little use for a helicopter now-a-days.

Da. Iss good idea more rooftop cameras.

 

[LKellerIII]

If they doubled or tripled the number of rooftop cameras and finished upgrading all of them to HD we would have little use for a helicopter now-a-days.

Da. Iss good idea more rooftop cameras.

Well, yeah - supposedly the reason helicopters are becoming a thing of the past for traffic coverage is (1) cameras are everywhere - not just roof tops, but on bridges, problematic freeway onramps, etc. It's also cheaper to send out traffic spotters in cars to strategic locations bfore rush hour, and I guess they stand around and watch traffic for a couple of hours.

Those dramatic news stories are a different thing, though. Following a car chase with a series of rooftop cameras wouldn't be nearly as dramatic as the helicopter following the action as its happening.

 

[justpassingthough]

Roof cameras are great- for the incarcerated who don't have access to a window. When they're used for weather conditions, I just laugh. I can look outside my own window and see what is actually going on outside.

Plus, here in LA, would have been deprived of 3 days in a row of car chases last week if we didn't have choppers. They would have to report on real news, and we all know we don't want that. Reality is depressing. Bring on more human interest stories and the depravity of car chases! You know every news producer in the world is clamoring for the day when one of these car chases ends in a horrific collision at the base of a tree that has the world's smallest kitten and cutest child trapped in, but the crash dislodges said kitten and child from the tree, and they escape injury.

 

[recto101]

Helicopters for TV news gathering has become a dying trend. The 2007 Phoenix crash and the financial collapse of 2008 resulted in stations making huge cutbacks. Insurance rates went way up after the Phoenix crash and fuel costs soared that same year. (before dropping the next year) Stations had to decide if they wanted to lay off 30-40% of their newsroom employees or cut out the chopper. In most cases the chopper went away or got put into a pool situation. The 2008 financial collapse cut ad revenue at most stations by 40-60%. Again, managers had to find ways to cut costs and the chopper was an easy one to get rid of. Pool arrangements were a way to dramatically cut the cost while still having the chopper available.

My hope is that in the next few years stations will find a way to start using drone helicopters for news gathering. That way they could have the chopper up without having a person in the air. The FAA is currently working on rules for this sort of thing. The cost of these things is a lot less than a chopper with a pilot.

I do remember that KGO-AM used to have Jetcopter 810 for Traffic news back in 2008-2009 until budget cuts at Citadel Radio came into play. But I do know that there was another Newscopter that crashed and it was in 1986 where a WNBC 660AM staff member Jane Dornacker died in that incident it was mentioned in the KYUU memories site. but back then the drone was not discovered yet.

You're talking radio on a TV thread, but I feel I have to make some corrections....correctotions?

1. KGO had the Jet Copter, and a regular copter before that - going back decades - probably to the 60s. . When I got to the Bay Area in 73, KGO had a copter and an airplane. One of their cute names for it was "The Hurleybird" because the pilot (and owner, I think) was a guy named Lou Hurley.

2. Even though the crash was in NYC, Dornaker was widely loved and eulogized here in the Bay Area. Aside from stage work and comedy she had done in the Bay Area, she also rode a traffic copter for 610/KFRC. I don't recall that she worked for KYUU, but it's possible, I guess. It was widely reported that Dr. Don Rose bankrolled a big charity celebration of Jane's life and donated money himself to a scholarship fund for Dornaker's daughter, who had previously lost her father, and was now an orphan.

3. Drones were not "discovered." They were invented.

I forgot another one back in 2004-2005 WNBC 4 Helicopter crashed again while they were doing breaking news of a police shooting in the New York area.