The aircraft went down as officers ended a rooftop shooting standoff on the city’s west side.
FLAGSTAFF, AZ — An Arizona Department of Public Safety helicopter crashed Wednesday night, killing the pilot and a trooper-paramedic as they assisted police during a prolonged gun battle in a Flagstaff neighborhood, officials said Thursday.
The crash capped nearly two hours of gunfire that began after officers responded to a domestic violence call shortly after 8:30 p.m. The suspect fired from rooftops across multiple homes as DPS’s air unit provided an overhead view for officers on the ground. The suspect was taken into custody around 10:20 p.m., near the time the helicopter went down on the city’s west side. State and federal investigators are examining the wreckage and flight path while local authorities continue the shooting investigation. The deaths immediately reverberated through Arizona law enforcement, with state and city leaders calling the loss a devastating blow.
Police Chief Sean Connolly said officers were speaking with a victim in the front yard when a man armed with a semiautomatic long rifle opened fire from behind the residence, then jumped from roof to roof as he continued to shoot. “Our city and our state have experienced a significant loss,” Connolly said, describing the neighborhood as “under siege.” DPS’s Ranger helicopter, which had flown in to provide tactical air support, arrived just after 10 p.m. and relayed positions to ground units as officers worked to contain the gunfire and evacuate nearby residents. Within minutes of the suspect’s arrest, witnesses reported a “giant boom,” homes shook, and a fire broke out near the crash site north of Route 66.
Authorities said the pilot and a DPS trooper who also served as a paramedic were the only people aboard. As of Thursday, officials had released the pilot’s name as Robert Skanky, a longtime Kingman resident and former U.S. Marine; the department had not publicly identified the trooper-paramedic. The helicopter, a Bell 407 built in 2004, crashed about 50 feet from a BNSF Railway line, scattering debris across the tracks and halting rail traffic overnight. Train operations resumed Thursday morning after crews cleared the scene. The suspect sustained non-life-threatening gunshot wounds and was being treated at Flagstaff Medical Center. No other injuries from the shooting were reported.
Witnesses described heavy bursts of gunfire beginning around 8:40 p.m., followed by the whir of rotor blades and then sudden silence before the impact. “It was so powerful and so loud,” said Amanda Brewer, who lives near the scene and counted dozens of shots over the course of the night. Jasmin Parra, who sheltered with family as police ordered residents indoors, said they heard officers on a loudspeaker urging the gunman to surrender. Michael Hunt, president of a local Fraternal Order of Police lodge, said the fallen crew “made the ultimate sacrifice while supporting the mission,” adding that the loss would be felt across Arizona’s public safety community. Gov. Katie Hobbs and Flagstaff Mayor Becky Daggett issued statements of condolence.
DPS said its Major Incident Division is leading the shooting investigation, while the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are examining the crash. Four NTSB investigators were assigned to the scene Thursday to review wreckage, radar data and radio traffic. Connolly declined to discuss preliminary causes, noting that investigators had not yet determined whether the aircraft experienced mechanical trouble or other factors. Records show the aircraft had been used for search-and-rescue and tactical support missions statewide. DPS said it will also review communications, response timelines and coordination among agencies during the incident.
Officials held a morning news conference at Flagstaff Police Department on Thursday and scheduled a broader briefing for Friday at 10 a.m. at DPS headquarters in Phoenix. Investigators are expected to outline early findings and next steps, including any planned scene reconstructions, interviews with witnesses and officers, and retrieval of onboard systems for analysis. The suspect’s name and potential charges had not been released as of Thursday afternoon. Police said they were processing multiple residences struck by gunfire and mapping the path the suspect took between rooftops during the standoff.
On Thursday, charred brush and scorched dirt marked the crash corridor near the rail line, where debris stretched across the ballast and into a lightly wooded area. Patrol cars blocked several streets while detectives photographed rooftops and collected shell casings behind homes. Neighbors traded fragments of the night—“shelter in place” calls, lights from the helicopter, then the sudden quiet. “We stayed low and kept the kids away from the windows,” Parra said. Farther west, a small crowd gathered at a gas station as police convoys rolled by and the smell of smoke drifted across Route 66.
As of Thursday evening, DPS had not released a cause for the crash or the identity of the trooper-paramedic. Train traffic had resumed and police said the immediate threat to the neighborhood had ended. Investigators plan to provide another update Friday at 10 a.m. in Phoenix.
Author note: Last updated February 5, 2026.