NTSB photo shows the wreckage of the Bell 407 which crashed after being hit by a Sikorsky S-64E Skycrane helitanker during a 2023 wildfire near Cabazon, California. NTSB Washington —

A firefighting helicopter crew’s decision to fly an altitude higher than they were cleared for and the subsequent rapid descent led to the deaths of three people in a midair collision in 2023 , according to a final report from the National Transportation Safety Board.

Thursday’s report concludes the investigation into the collision between a Bell 407, on a helicopter coordinator training flight, and a Sikorsky S-64E Skycrane helitanker during a 2023 wildfire near Cabazon, California.

The report concludes the cause of the collision was the Skycrane crew’s decision to enter the airspace around the

See Full Page