Newport, Costa Mesa Preparing to Replace Copters Lost in Crash

Despite opposition from some residents who are worried about a repeat of the March crash of two police helicopters, both Newport Beach and Costa Mesa are preparing to buy new helicopters.

Costa Mesa Police Chief David Snowden said the City Council has already approved the order of a Hughes 500E helicopter to replace the one it lost in the crash. The insurance policy on the helicopter carried a $25,000 deductible, which the city has agreed to pay. About $475,000 of the new aircraft’s $500,000 price tag will be paid by the insurance company.

Snowden said the city is expected to have the aircraft within the next two months. The new helicopter will supplement the Hughes 300 currently flying in Costa Mesa.

Mike Blitch, Newport Beach police patrol division captain, said the Police Department is requesting that the City Council at its May 11 meeting approve $299,000 to purchase a used Hughes 500D to replace the helicopter it lost.

Blitch said the Hughes 500D, a four-seater, would produce less noise and have more room than the Hughes 300 involved in the crash.

On March 10, Costa Mesa and Newport Beach police helicopters collided over Irvine, killing the two police officers and a civilian observer who were riding in the Costa Mesa aircraft. The two officers in the Newport Beach helicopter survived the crash. The two copters, which plunged to the ground without a word of radio transmission, had joined ground units in a high-speed car chase that continued after the crash.

Mike Hilford, president of Citizens for Responsible Use of Helicopters, has opposed replacing the helicopters, claiming that they are unsafe and a bad investment. Hilford said the funds to replace the helicopters should be used to buy additional squad cars.

But Blitch said: “We consider the helicopters to be extremely safe. As the chief (Arb Campbell) has said, since the President of the United States flies in helicopters, there must be a feeling of safety at the federal level.”

Trying to correctly compare the uses and costs of the helicopters to squad cars is like comparing apples and oranges, Blitch said.

The $299,000 the Police Department wants to spend on the helicopter would be enough to buy six squad cars, Blitch said. But each squad car is replaced on a yearly basis, he said, and the Hughes 300C the city is still flying would now cost about $100,000 and has served the department since 1971.

“I’ve been chief here since Dec. 1, and I’ve been convinced that the helicopters are a very, very viable program in the community,” Snowden said.