History Main / HellishCopter

* In ''BatmanUnderTheRedHood'', Batman takes out a helicopter using an EMP-loaded rocket, and then [[InvertedTrope prevents the thing from crashing]] using cables and with the help of Nightwing and a giant staple gun. ItMakesSenseInContext.

* Film/JamesBond is attacked by helicopters in many movies. Needless to say, they go down easily. It's averted when the good guys are in them, except for ''Film/GoldenEye'', where Bond and Natalia are only saved by the cabin ejector (and the helicopter was on ground, anyway).

* In ''Film/{{Sheena}}'' the bad guys' helicopter gunship falls prey to a flock of telepathically controlled flamingos.

-->'''Superman''': ''Easy, miss. I've got you. ''
-->'''Lois Lane''': ''You - you've got me? Who's got you? ''
** ''Film/SupermanII'' (1980). During the Army's battle with the three Kryptonian supervillains Ursa blows a helicopter away with her super breath, causing it to crash.

* UNSC Pelicans in ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' time and time again get shot down by the covenant, usually killing everyone inside.

* ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare'': [[spoiler: Sergeant Jackson's helicopter, and several others, crashes due to being caught in the pressure wave of a nuclear explosion. Sergeant Jackson barely survives the crash, and lives just long enough to see the results of the nuke before [[DownerEnding succumbing to his injures]].]]
** Taken to SerialEscalation levels in ''Modern Warfare 2'', where TheSquad survives a conventional helicopter shoot-down, only to find themselves fleeing for safety after [[spoiler: an EMP blast causes ''the rest'' of the choppers to ''rain from the sky''.]]

*** Subverted in the "Black Tuesday" level in ''Modern Warfare 3'', where the player character's helicopter take a massive hit and almost crashes into a New York high-rise, but manages to level out and fly away to safety.

** In "One Shot, One Kill", Price and Capt. [=McMillan=] snipe an enemy chopper, only for it to kamikaze towards them and cripple [=McMillan=].
* [[Franchise/{{Halo}} UNSC Pelicans]] time and time again get shot down by the covenant, usually killing everyone inside.

* Franchise/ResidentEvil is quite infamous for this. The only safe helicopters are the ones at the end of the games. The 4th game in particular has casual mention of a rescue helicopter being shot down off screen, and then another helicopter appearing for all of 5 seconds before being shot down.

* In ''AlanWake'', helicopters get downed twice by birds being controlled by [[EldritchAbomination the Dark Presence]], rendering them invulnerable to conventional weapons and enabling them to do horrendous damage.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 4}}'' Brotherhood of Steel Vertibirds exist in only three states: crashed, in the process of crashing and about to start crashing.

** In ''Film/TheWorldIsNotEnough'', helicopter-mounted circular saws, first seen trimming trees to make way for the pipeline, are utilized in the attack on Zukovsky's caviar factory, and one of them saws Bond's car in half.

* Happens numerous times in the ''Film/DieHard'' movies, with various helicopters meeting their ends due to rocket launchers, power lines, and ''[[CarFu police cars]]''.

* ''Film/IAmLegend'': A series of flashbacks show Neville making sure his family gets to the evacuation point so they can be airlifted out of the city. They board a helicopter which safely takes off and begins to fly across the river when another chopper begins spinning wildly out of control due to being overloaded and misbalanced with people who tried to grab onto the skid as it took off. [[spoiler:There is a quick cut out of the flashback just before we can see the two choppers collide.]]

* In ''VideoGame/{{Fallout4}}'' Brotherhood of Steel Vertibirds exist in only three states: crashed, in the process of crashing and about to start crashing.

* In ''VideoGame/Fallout4'' Brotherhood of Steel Vertibirds exist in only three states: crashed, in the process of crashing and about to start crashing.

* During the filming for the [[Series/TheTwilightZone Twilight Zone]] [[TheMovie movie]], a helicopter crashed during filming, [[HelicopterBlender killing]] [[FatalMethodActing Vic Morrow and two child actors on the ground]].

--> (clip of a helicopter crashing into highway overpass and exploding)

--> (montage of a helicopter crashing into buildings, maiming pedestrians, and generally causing mayhem)

* ''HeavyWeapon'' has the white non-combat support helicopters that dropped {{powerup}}s for you. While these were immune to enemies, '''[[WhatTheHellHero you]]''' could accidentally shoot them down via friendly fire, and if you did, you'd be docked a lot of points from your score. Trying not to shoot them is easier said than done, as they may appear during the worst possible moments when several DemonicSpiders are on the screen.

* ''LollipopChainsaw'' features a rescue chopper in the first level, airlifting various classmates that Juliet saves from the Zombies. A pair of zombies climb up the rescue line and get inside the chopper, causing it to crash. MoodWhiplash occurs as [[TheDitz Juliet]] gives out a particularly ditzy example of AndThatsTerrible in response.

* BroForce: You get picked up by helicopter at the end of every level. Certain bros (ones with special attacks that shoot up or do a lot of splash damage) can actually shoot it down, at which point an identical chopper will show up a few seconds later.

* ''{{Concerned}}'': Gordon Frohman takes down a Combine Gunship ''on accident'' by trying to dispose of a body by throwing it off a bridge. The body gets caught in the rotor blades of the gunship, which causes a [[CrossesTheLineTwice hilarious]] case of DisasterDominoes.

* PlayedForLaughs in ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'', where [[KentBrockamnNews Channel 5 News]]' [[DrunkDriver Drunk Billy]] is exactly as good of a helicopter pilot as you'd expect.

[[folder:Amime]]

-->'''Pilot:''' "He went in the tunnel�"

* ''ModernWarfare'': [[spoiler: Sergeant Jackson's helicopter, and several others, crashes due to being caught in the pressure wave of a nuclear explosion. Sergeant Jackson barely survives the crash, and lives just long enough to see the results of the nuke before [[DownerEnding succumbing to his injures]].]]

** Actually, it seems to be noteworthy if a POV character climbs aboard a helicopter in the ModernWarfare games and the chopper ''doesn't'' get shot down somehow, though most times it's actually the ShortLivedAerialEscape at work.

* ''{{ER}}'': At the helipad on the hospital roof, [[spoiler:Dr. Romano]] comes a little too close to the tail rotor and loses an arm. For months after that, he avoids the things by hiding out in the ambulance bay when they land, but in the season finale [[spoiler: [[{{Irony}} the same helicopter]] loses control, falls off the roof, and crushes him to death.]]

* Subverted on ''{{Lost}}''; the second episode of season 4 follows the survivors trying to locate the team of rescuers sent by helicopter to the Island after the helicopter hit turbulence and the passengers parachuted down. They finally track down the pilot and ask him where the helicopter crashed. He replies, "Crashed? What kind of pilot do you think I am? I landed it in that clearing." [[spoiler:It does crash later, but only because it ran out of fuel due to a leak]].