Penn State Police helicopter vs tailgate party

[John Eacott]

At first (and 2nd & 3rd) viewing this seems so wrong on so many counts.

Reported as a rowdy tailgate party prior to a football game, but OGE hover taxi downwind over a huge number of people and loose objects doesn't seem applicable :(


https://youtu.be/j4Au-yCQur0


https://youtu.be/DGRHFBCGtB8

[SASless]

On the very first viewing it WAS incredibly STUPID!!!!

There better be a couple of Police Helicopter Crew looking for a job by Wednesday or you can accept they did that crap under orders from their management.

Whoever the idiot is that made the decision for this to happen needs to be removed from the Force.

[cappt]

Looks like debris flew up into the rotors as well, could have crashed into the crowd. Really stupid, should have their license revoked immediately.

[Bell_ringer]

:ooh:
well that seemed like a good idea at the time..

[nevillestyke]

Maybe there were some cherry trees in the middle there, which needed drying?

[ShyTorque]

Seems like a case of deliberate and unnecessary public endangerment. Anyone hit by a flying gazebo could easily be injured, or worse. If the aircraft had suffered a rotor strike and gone down into the crowd it would have been catastrophic. But plain stupid in any case.
A pilot flying like that (even a police pilot) in EASA land would almost certainly find himself in court.

[Bell_ringer]

Maybe there were some cherry trees in the middle there, which needed drying?

I think all the talk about lunch made him want to pop in for a burger or two, fly-through could be the next big thing :}

[DOUBLE BOGEY]

I think all the talk about lunch made him want to pop in for a burger or two, fly-through could be the next big thing :}

On the upside....at least it was not in FOG!!!!

[Bell_ringer]

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/490x336/twit_02671c75ac0bb2a03fbb504521817a00fd5c956d.png

[farmpilot]

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/490x336/twit_02671c75ac0bb2a03fbb504521817a00fd5c956d.png

So two wrongs make a right in this case. Unbelievable.

[GrayHorizonsHeli]

I would tend to think the police lost control of their situation and then further lost sight of the goal.
Theres no excuse for hovering a helicopter over a crowd like that. Go to your safe observation point and do what you do best...observe and record the scene, relay info to the officers on the ground.

The next step would be what? shooting from the helicopter like this incident???

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QHM8oXG4h0

[SASless]

Hey....come on now....we know how violent Ohio Football Fans (American style Football) can be at tail gate parties prior to a game!:rolleyes:

[Bell_ringer]

Hey....come on now....we know how violent Ohio Football Fans (American style Football) can be at tail gate parties prior to a game!:rolleyes:

Once you've had too much of that water liquid that they disguise as beer all hell breaks loose.
Shock and awe :E

[MikeNYC]

Anyone local to that area know if the local FSDO is looking into this? Terrible airmanship, huge risk to the public, and there are so many other (safer) ways to deal with an unruly situation.

[havick]

A 212 with a firefighting belly tank would have made for better viewing dispersing the crowd.

[GrayHorizonsHeli]

I read this morning the FAA is investigating this

[SASless]

I have flown Law Enforcement Helicopters and have been a Police Officer working Patrol and Investigations in my past.

I am really bothered by what I saw in the video....for many reasons.

There were completely innocent folks harmed by the actions of the Police.

Not every person there was unruly, a harm to others, and were violating no law in any manner.

The decision to do what was done....deserves a very thorough investigation by the FAA and both State and Federal Prosecutors by means of Grand Juries.

As far as I am concerned there are Criminal violations that warrant prosecution along with License action by the FAA for the aircrew involved.

I am very supportive of Law Enforcement but also firmly believe in maintaining a high standard of conduct.

The basic tenet of Law Enforcement is to use only that force necessary to effect the arrest of perpetrators of criminal acts.

This was not a riot or violent protest of some kind.....this was just a bunch of sports enthusiasts engaging in a pre-game Tail Gate Party where they put on a feed, drink a bit, and prepare to attend a Football game.

No property was being damaged....no fires were set (except in the Barbies) and no one was being assaulted.

I want to hear why the Police could not deal with the individuals who were supposed to be the reason for the Police response we saw on the video.

I want them to explain what harm was being done that warranted such a foolish action by the Helicopter.

Perhaps there is something going on that cannot be seen in the video.......what was it?

This will grow to be a bigger thing that it seemed at the beginning reports.


https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/faa-looks-chaos-caused-low-flying-police-helicopter-penn-state-n915991

[GrayHorizonsHeli]

the article stated that one police officer had his wrist broken and two police horses were punched.
they flew low so that people could hear the loud hailer and left the area when they realized they were blowing stuff around.
I agree with you that wouldn't warrant the response they gave. and it seems foolish to claim that coming closer with the loudest thing on the block would make a loud hailer more effective??

[SASless]

Let's question why there were police horses involved to begin with....it was a parking lot and the people were staying there and not wandering off creating mayhem.

Where are the video's of the violence that prompted this reaction by the Police?

Do you wonder where the News Media and all their cameras were while this was going on?

[albatross]

the article stated that one police officer had his wrist broken and two police horses were punched.
they flew low so that people could hear the loud hailer and left the area when they realized they were blowing stuff around.
I agree with you that wouldn't warrant the response they gave. and it seems foolish to claim that coming closer with the loudest thing on the block would make a loud hailer more effective??

Perhaps they should have realized before the low alt, low speed, low intelligence pass that they were going to blow stuff around?

[Bell_ringer]

If you googled 101 ways to disperse drunk American students, I will put money on a helicopter not featuring in the list.
This really was a yippy Kay yay :mad: moment.
Only in America.

[Spunk]

This really was a yippy Kay yay https://www.pprune.org/images/smilies/censored.gif moment.
Only in America

Not really. I remember a picture of a federal police „Cougar“ (or smilar seize) hovering over the heads of a bunch of demonstrators ( demonstrating against the construction of a nuclear power plant) in Northern Germany in the early 80s.
A lawyer used that picture in court to demonstrate the difference between „careless and reckless“ flying of a newscopter flying in 500 ft vs. the „federal police style“. Case dismissed :}