The deadly crash of NBC4's NewsChopper4 in Los Angeles has put veteran aerial journalist Eliana Moreno in the spotlight, prompting thousands of people to search who is Eliana Moreno and learn more about the reporter whose voice and aerial images had become familiar to Southern California viewers. NBC Los Angeles has now confirmed that Moreno and pilot George Marciniw were aboard the helicopter when it crashed in Chatsworth on September 15, 2026. Both were killed. A third person on the ground also died, while another person was hospitalized following the fiery crash.

Moreno was an aerial photographer and reporter who worked from NewsChopper4, providing live coverage for NBC4 and Telemundo 52. She had spent more than 15 years with helicopter operator Angel City Air and built a career covering wildfires, police pursuits, traffic emergencies and other breaking news from above Los Angeles.

Who Is Eliana Moreno? Inside Her Career as an Aerial Journalist

For readers asking who is Eliana Moreno, she was a Southern California television journalist whose job combined reporting, photography and live broadcasting from a helicopter.

Moreno was born in Orange County and graduated from Chapman University in 2010 with degrees in broadcast journalism and political science. NBC Los Angeles says she joined the Angel City Air helicopter team in September 2010 and later became a familiar voice during aerial coverage for NBC4 and Telemundo 52.

Chapman University profiled Moreno earlier in her career and described the unusually demanding nature of her work. From the helicopter, she was often required to report what was happening, operate or coordinate aerial camera coverage and explain fast-moving events to viewers simultaneously. She had wanted to become a television reporter since childhood. Her professional profile says that ambition began when she was around 11 years old.

Eliana Moreno NBC Helicopter Crash: What Happened in Chatsworth?

The Eliana Moreno NBC helicopter crash occurred shortly before 7 p.m. local time on September 15 in the 9100 block of North Mason Avenue in Chatsworth, a community in the San Fernando Valley. NewsChopper4 was providing aerial coverage of a separate deadly crash involving a Metro bus nearby when the helicopter went down between commercial buildings. NBC4 confirmed that the aircraft was operated by Angel City Air for NBC Los Angeles and Telemundo 52.

The helicopter struck an area containing parked vehicles and storage containers before a fire broke out. Four vehicles and two storage containers were damaged. Los Angeles firefighters responded to the scene and extinguished the blaze. Three people died in the helicopter incident and another person was hospitalized. NBC4 subsequently identified Moreno and Marciniw as the two Angel City Air employees aboard the aircraft.

The Eliana Moreno NBC helicopter crash initially generated confusion because early reports confirmed the aircraft belonged to NBC4 but did not immediately identify those aboard.

That is why some articles published during the first hours after the crash described Moreno only as "feared" to have been on NewsChopper4. NBC4's later update has now confirmed her identity.

News Helicopter Crash Los Angeles Today: What Has Been Confirmed?

People searching news helicopter crash Los Angeles today may encounter conflicting early reports because information changed rapidly in the hours after the accident. Here is what is currently confirmed:

• NewsChopper4 crashed in Chatsworth on September 15.
• The aircraft was operated by Angel City Air and provided news coverage for NBC4 and Telemundo 52.
• Eliana Moreno and pilot George Marciniw were aboard and died.
• A third person died on the ground.
• One additional person was hospitalized.
• The helicopter had been covering a separate deadly Metro bus collision nearby.
• The cause of the helicopter crash has not yet been established. 

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are involved in examining the accident. Investigators will need to review the aircraft, flight information, communications and other evidence before determining what caused NewsChopper4 to go down. Therefore, videos or social-media posts claiming to establish a definitive cause should be treated cautiously. For anyone following the news helicopter crash Los Angeles today, the most important distinction is between confirmed information from authorities and NBC4 and speculation based on footage circulating online.

Who Was Pilot George Marciniw?

George Marciniw was the pilot flying with Moreno. NBC Los Angeles described him as a Southern California native and Burbank High School graduate. Moreno and Marciniw began flying together in 2023, according to the station's latest report. Marciniw had decades of aviation experience and was associated with the Southern California helicopter industry.

NewsChopper4 itself played a major role in Los Angeles breaking-news coverage, regularly following wildfires, police pursuits, traffic incidents and emergencies across a vast metropolitan region.

Only months before the September crash, NewsChopper4 was also involved in an air-traffic incident near Hollywood Burbank Airport in which its pilot manoeuvred away from an incoming aircraft and subsequently alerted air-traffic controllers. NBC reported at the time that there had not been imminent danger. There is currently no verified indication that the March incident was connected to the September crash.

Eliana Moreno's Reporting Career Before NBC4

Moreno's career in aerial journalism stretched back well over a decade. Angel City Air's professional profile identified her as an aerial photographer who joined the company shortly after graduating from Chapman University in 2010. Earlier in her career, she provided aerial coverage connected with KCBS and KCAL before becoming closely associated with NewsChopper4.

Her assignments were often situations where an aerial perspective could provide information unavailable to reporters on the ground. During Southern California wildfires, for example, Moreno could show viewers the direction and scale of a fire, road closures, evacuation routes and firefighters' efforts.

Chapman University highlighted her work during the 2017 Skirball Fire. Moreno was among the journalists who reached the developing fire from the air early and provided coverage as it rapidly expanded near the Getty Center and Interstate 405. Her reporting required speed, but Moreno had also stressed the importance of accuracy when covering situations where people's safety and property could depend on the information being broadcast. That background helps explain who is Eliana Moreno beyond the immediate tragedy: she was an experienced breaking-news journalist whose workplace happened to be hundreds or thousands of feet above Southern California.

Eliana Moreno Instagram LinkedIn: Where Was She Active Online?

Search interest in Eliana Moreno Instagram LinkedIn has also risen following the crash. Moreno's Instagram account was associated with the handle @eli_in_the_heli, reflecting her career reporting from helicopters. Her X profile, under @elianamoreno, described her as an aerial photographer and reporter for NBC Los Angeles and Telemundo 52 in NewsChopper4 and identified her as a Chapman University alumna.

Her LinkedIn profile lists Angel City Air and Chapman University and describes her long-standing ambition to work in television news. It also records experience across reporting, production and aerial photojournalism. Anyone searching Eliana Moreno Instagram LinkedIn should take care to distinguish her verified or professionally documented accounts from unrelated profiles belonging to other people with the same name.

Eliana Moreno NBC Helicopter Work Made Her a Familiar LA Voice

The phrase Eliana Moreno NBC helicopter became closely associated with her because aerial journalism was not simply an occasional assignment for Moreno—it was the defining feature of much of her career. NewsChopper4 allowed her to cover areas that ground crews could not easily reach or fully see. During wildfires, freeway incidents and police activity, an aerial reporter can provide viewers with context about scale, movement and location in real time.

Moreno's work therefore combined several skills normally divided among different newsroom employees: photography, reporting, observation, live narration and coordination with the television newsroom. The Eliana Moreno NBC helicopter role also made her particularly recognizable to viewers even when she was not physically visible on screen. Audiences often heard her reporting while watching the aerial footage transmitted from NewsChopper4.

The news helicopter crash Los Angeles today story is still developing, particularly regarding the cause of the accident. What is no longer uncertain is Moreno's presence aboard the aircraft. Early reports stopped short of confirming it, but NBC Los Angeles has now identified Eliana Moreno and George Marciniw as the NewsChopper4 crew members who died.

For more updates like this, follow The United Indian and stay informed with the latest news that matters.