Helicopter

A Glendale police helicopter on Thursday hauled away several hundred feet of the water hoses used last week to fight a 75-acre blaze in Glenoaks Canyon. The hose lines were left behind on May 3 after more than 200 firefighters battled flames that swept through tinder-dry brush and prompted neighborhood evacuations. PHOTOS: Glendale Police assists Glendale Fire to gather hose after fire Officials opted to haul away the water hoses using helicopters to save time and avoid potential injuries to firefighters, who would have had to trek up the hillside to retrieve them, said Glendale Police Lt. Steve Robertson.

A helicopter on a routine flight over Los Angeles made a "hard landing" in Griffith Park around 2:17 p.m. Thursday after experiencing "mechanical problems," fire officials said.  The pilot and three passengers, who were not immediately identified, were treated at the scene and released, according to L.A. Fire Department spokesman Jamie Moore.  The helicopter was on a "routine flight" from Redlands, circled Santa Monica and was preparing...

Amber Willard SOUTHWEST GLENDALE -- It's not uncommon for traffic to be congested on Central Avenue, but it is when there's a helicopter in the middle of it. A medical helicopter landed near the intersection of Central Avenue and Los Feliz Road late Wednesday morning so a critical patient at Glendale Memorial Hospital could be transported, officials said. The hospital does not have a heliport because it is not a trauma center, a spokeswoman said, so the helicopter had to land in the street.

Tania Chatila The sounds of a helicopter could be heard just above Scholl Canyon Wednesday as Glendale firefighters trained with police helicopters in long-line tactics -- the transportation of equipment to fire personnel via choppers. "We do this on an annual basis because we have certain tasks that are high risk, but are low-frequency operations," said Glendale Capt. Vince Rifino, referring to the helicopter transport, which can be dangerous for fire personnel on the ground, but is a tactic used rarely.

BURBANK — Students and faculty members at John Burroughs High School are mourning the loss of culinary arts teacher Tania Hurd, 46, who was one of three passengers killed Saturday on a tourist helicopter that crashed on Santa Catalina Island. The Eurocopter AS350 Island Express helicopter carrying six passengers crashed at 9:30 a.m. Saturday near Two Harbors on the northwest end of the island, said Terry Williams, spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board. Hurd and two others were killed, and three passengers, including Hurd’s stepson, C.J. Noecker, were critically injured and are being treated at local hospitals.

Rocco, a Burbank Police dog, was breathing and salivating heavily Wednesday just seconds after he got off a helicopter that had taken him to the Glendale Police gun range, where he searched and captured a suspect. Rocco was anxious. It was his first time boarding a helicopter, said Burbank Police Officer Joel Rodriguez, who is Rocco’s handler. “He knows it’s play time for him,” Rodriguez said. Wednesday’s helicopter ride at the Benedict Airport in Pasadena was part of an annual training scenario for the police dogs.

We live in La Cañada but often see the Glendale Police Department helicopter over our little town and over La Crescenta. I imagine there may be situations where the helicopter is used to support a traffic stop originating in Glendale. It seems plausible, but I cannot imagine such scenarios occur as often as we see the Glendale Police helicopter here. It has a very distinctive sound from the Bell Jet Rangers used by L.A. County Fire and sheriff's departments. As a citizen, I wanted to propose to the Glendale leadership the idea of documenting online the flight logs of their helicopter.

Jackson Bell When battling brush fires, the last thing firefighters want to deal with is repeatedly hiking up and down hillsides. So Glendale Fire teamed up with its police counterparts Thursday to practice helicopter sling loading, which had Glendale Police's helicopter unit fly about 1,000 feet of extra hose to firefighters in the steep terrain above Scholl Canyon Golf Course, 3800 E. Glenoaks Blvd. "It's easier and there is less fatigue for firefighters, who are already doing strenuous uphill work," Fire Capt.

Darleene Barrientos The helicopter roaring to and from the Glendale Galleria Tower on Thursday was not responding a hostage situation, but it was helping Glendale Police prepare for one. Members of Glendale Police's Special Response Team and crisis negotiation team spent the day learning hand signals and safety rules for working around the department's 33,050-pound MD 520N helicopter. Each member flew from the department's shooting range in the San Rafael Hills to the top of the Glendale Galleria Tower, near the intersection of Broadway and Orange Street.

Marshall Allen GLENDALE -- Four teenage boys ranging from 14 to 17 were rescued from steep terrain in the foothills of Brand Park on Monday night. The boys had set out for a hike at about 11 a.m. and got stuck on the terrain. At 6:14, they placed a call to 911 from a cell phone that one of them was carrying, said Capt. Robert Doyle of the Glendale Fire Department. A spotter from a police helicopter located the group at about 7 p.m. Urban Search and Rescue and fire and police personnel were deployed for the rescue.

A helicopter on a routine flight over Los Angeles made a "hard landing" in Griffith Park around 2:17 p.m. Thursday after experiencing "mechanical problems," fire officials said.  The pilot and three passengers, who were not immediately identified, were treated at the scene and released, according to L.A. Fire Department spokesman Jamie Moore.  The helicopter was on a "routine flight" from Redlands, circled Santa Monica and was preparing...

A Glendale police helicopter on Thursday hauled away several hundred feet of the water hoses used last week to fight a 75-acre blaze in Glenoaks Canyon. The hose lines were left behind on May 3 after more than 200 firefighters battled flames that swept through tinder-dry brush and prompted neighborhood evacuations. PHOTOS: Glendale Police assists Glendale Fire to gather hose after fire Officials opted to haul away the water hoses using helicopters to save time and avoid potential injuries to firefighters, who would have had to trek up the hillside to retrieve them, said Glendale Police Lt. Steve Robertson.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) joined California Sens. Dianne Feinstein  and Barbara Boxer in introducing legislation on Monday to try and provide Los Angeles County residents a respite from helicopter noise. The Los Angeles Residential Helicopter Noise Relief Act would require the Federal Aviation Administration to establish regulations on flight paths and minimum altitudes for helicopter flights in the county, Schiff said. “Residents living in Glendale, Pasadena, the Valley, the Hollywood Hills, West Hollywood and other areas are especially affected by intrusive, disruptive and often non-emergency related helicopter traffic above their neighborhoods,” Schiff said in a statement.

A 60-year-old Glendale man was arrested Friday night after he allegedly grabbed his wife's neck in their home, then went outside and shot at a police helicopter with a BB gun rifle, officials said. Charles Colvin was taken into custody on suspicion of domestic battery after he grabbed his wife's neck tightly and yelled at her while holding the BB gun, according to Glendale police reports. Colvin's wife reportedly told police that he was walking around the outside of their home and allegedly discharging the newly-purchased rifle at a police helicopter that was orbiting overhead.

Good morning readers. As you recover from the rare mid-week holiday, feast your tired eyes on these news bits from around the San Fernando Valley:  Officals are saying a man attempted to kill himself in the Horse Flats Campground area Wednesday. The campground is in the Angeles National Forest, about 30 miles from La Cañada. La Cañada Patch  Burbank police nabbed a man they say was driving a purloined Bentley. The suspect, oddly adorned in a motorcycle helmet and American-flag themed pants, was taken into custody after a brief chase.

Two men were arrested Friday after they allegedly flashed a red laser at a Glendale police helicopter, officials said. Dylan Chavez, 18, of La Crescenta and Jason Phillips, 20, of Glendale were arrested just after 9:30 p.m. Friday on suspicion of discharging a laser at an aircraft. The laser struck the aircrew three times, with each flash lasting three to four seconds following the helicopter's flight pattern, according to Glendale police reports. The aircrew used an infrared camera to pinpoint the laser's origin to a home backyard, where they spotted one of the men allegedly trying to hide behind a boat.

A 16-year-old boy was arrested Friday after he allegedly flashed a laser at a Glendale police helicopter, officials said. The police helicopter was patrolling the area of Pacific Avenue and the Ventura (134) Freeway about 10 p.m. when a green laser beam suddenly flashed over the flight crew, according to police. The helicopter pinpointed the laser's origin to a home in the 400 block of Myrtle Street. When officers arrived at the home, they found a group of men running into the home.

The FBI is now investigating an incident in which an 18-year-old North Hollywood man allegedly pointed a laser at a private jet landing Thursday night at Bob Hope Airport, and then at the police helicopter sent to find him, officials said. At about 8:45 p.m., the private jet pilot contacted airport police to report being “hit by a green laser twice on approach to the airport,” said Victor Gill, a spokesman for the airfield. Police helicopters from Los Angeles and Pasadena were dispatched to investigate the incident, Gill said.

State Assemblyman Mike Feuer (D-Los Angeles) introduced a resolution last week urging the U.S. Congress to pass legislation that would reduce helicopter noise over L.A. County neighborhoods. The Los Angeles Residential Helicopter Noise Relief Act, introduced in the U.S. House by Rep. Howard Berman (D-Valley Village), would require the Federal Aviation Administration to issue regulations relating to helicopter flight paths and altitudes. Sen. Dianne Feinstein sponsored similar legislation regarding helicopter noise, which is now tied to the noise relief act. “For far too long, residential neighborhoods have had to deal with increasing noise and other burdens from helicopters,” Feuer said in a statement.