Four killed in Japan helicopter crash

A helicopter chartered by a TV news station crashed while filming a highway accident in central Japan today, killing all four…

A helicopter chartered by a TV news station crashed while filming a highway accident in central Japan today, killing all four aboard, including a reporter and cameraman, police said.

Witnesses said the helicopter went down after hitting a power line, a Nagano prefecture (state) police official said on condition of anonymity.

A reporter and cameraman for the Shinetsu Broadcasting Corp. were surveying the collision of a truck and van in Nagano prefecture about 150 miles southwest of Tokyo when the helicopter crashed.

The 53-year-old pilot and a mechanic also were killed.