FLAGSTAFF, AZ – A tragic aviation accident claimed the lives of two crew members late Wednesday night when an Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) helicopter crashed while assisting local law enforcement during an active shooter incident in Flagstaff. The AZDPS Ranger helicopter, a Bell 407 manufactured in 2004, was providing tactical air support at approximately 10:15 p.m. on February 4, 2026, when it went down in a forested area northeast of the primary crime scene.
Authorities confirmed that both the pilot and a trooper-paramedic on board were killed in the crash. While their identities have not yet been officially released, they were veteran members of the state’s specialized Air Rescue Unit, which is trained for high-risk operations ranging from tactical support to technical mountain rescues. Local residents reported hearing a significant impact that shook nearby homes, followed by a large fire in the woods north of the city’s railroad tracks.
The mission was initiated to assist Flagstaff police who were responding to reports of a shooter near West Route 66. Officers on the ground were involved in a direct exchange of gunfire with the suspect at the time the helicopter went down. The suspect, who suffered non-fatal gunshot wounds during the confrontation, was successfully taken into custody. No other law enforcement officers or civilians were reported injured in the shooting incident.
Following the crash, Flagstaff police issued a temporary shelter-in-place order for nearby neighborhoods, which has since been lifted. A dual investigation is now underway to determine the cause of the tragedy and review the shooting incident. The AZDPS Major Incident Division is leading the probe into the officer-involved shooting, while the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have taken charge of the crash site to examine the aircraft’s wreckage.
