Officials say a helicopter crashed on Pikes Peak during an Audi commercial shoot today, injuring four. The helicopter was shooting the Driverless Audi TTS. Medical crews are en route, but having difficulty reaching the victims by helicopter. UPDATE.
In June, Audi reported they'd be bringing the driverless TTS to Pikes Peak in Colorado for a full test of their new vehicle on the challenging course. The helicopter filming them, an Aerospatiale according to KKTV, was recording the TTS when it went down.
Reports indicate the pilot is in critical condition and the three other passengers are injured. The crash is apparently right below the summit of Pikes Peak, making it difficult for medical crews to reach them.
UPDATE: Audi of America released the following statement:
Audi is saddened by the helicopter incident that took place this morning near the summit of Pikes Peak. Today's film crew was shooting a test run of the "Autonomous Audi TTS Pikes Peak," a joint program between Audi, the Electronic Research Laboratory in Palo Alto, California, and Stanford University. The goal of the project involves ascending Pikes Peak autonomously without a driver behind the wheel to demonstrate the capabilities of advanced driver assistance systems and GPS. The car was not involved in the incident.
Further information on the helicopter incident will be released by the National Transportation Safety Board and local law enforcement officials. All research activities on Pikes Peak have been suspended. The research project will continue at a later date.