The scene, which was filmed at evening — and subsequently a direct violation of kid labor legal guidelines within the first place — referred to as for Morrow’s character to hold his two kids out of an deserted village and flee throughout a river. On the similar time, American troopers have been purported to be “chasing” them in a hovering helicopter. An precise Vietnam veteran, Dorcey Wingo, was piloting the helicopter throughout the scene.
Whereas hovering near a big explosive impact, Wingo positioned the plane near the bottom after which turned it 180 levels for the next shot. The particular impact was detonated whereas the helicopter’s tail rotor was flying straight above it, and a metallic lid from the explosion struck the rotor, inflicting the plane to spin uncontrolled. On the ensuing trial, the protection claimed the particular impact had been detonated prematurely.
The three actors on the bottom couldn’t escape the plummeting plane or its blades and have been killed immediately. Chen was crushed to loss of life by the suitable touchdown skid, and the helicopter’s still-spinning blades decapitated each Morrow and Le. The New York Instances reported that the helicopter sequence was each “poorly deliberate” and “badly rehearsed.” Between 1986 and 1987, an investigation was performed surrounding the occasions of the ill-fated scene, and 5 members of the crew — together with Dorcey Wingo — have been tried for manslaughter and later acquitted.
The strangest a part of your complete scenario? 9 years earlier, in 1973, Morrow insisted on having a life insurance coverage coverage whereas filming any scenes wherein he needed to trip in a helicopter. When requested why he was so hesitant in direction of this kind of scene, it was reported that Morrow replied, “I’ve at all times had a premonition I used to be going to die in a helicopter crash!”
