SAN FRANCISCO, July 15 (Xinhua) -- A flight instructor was killed and a student seriously wounded after a training helicopter crashed in Hayward city, Northern California, on Monday, a city official said.
The helicopter, which carried no other persons than the student and the instructor of Pacific Helicopters flight school, crashed at Hayward Executive Airport, about 40 km south of San Francisco, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Chuck Finnie, a spokesman for the city of Hayward, said the two persons were practicing takeoffs and landings when their helicopter went down. The 62-year-old instructor, identified as Wayne Prodger, was pronounced dead at the scene while the student was rushed to a nearby hospital.
Finnie said it was not clear who was flying the lightweight four-seater Robinson R44 aircraft at the time of the crash.
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the incident, said the newspaper.
