Grounding the Bird In Cincy

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Let’s face it, when drones came along, the writing has been on the wall for News Helicopters.

A couple of days ago, FTVLive FIRST told you that WJAX/WFOX in Jacksonville was grounding their news chopper and now the same thing is happening at Scripps WCPO in Cincy.

The station said that the chopper will make its last flight in February.

For six years, WCPO has touted the station's unique Chopper 9 coverage, noting that it was the only Cincinnati TV news helicopter. "Chopper 9" even appears in newscast openings flying over downtown.

Chopper Reporter Dan Carroll will also be let go.

"With advances in technology, we are confident we can continue to provide aerial coverage with our Sky 9 drone video. Given these changes, Dan’s contract is not being renewed. Dan’s done an excellent job of covering breaking news stories from the Chopper over the last six years," WCPO GM Jeff Brogan says.

"We will be retiring Chopper 9 next month. We’re proud of the work we have done in covering breaking news and traffic with the chopper," Brogan says.

Looks like they will squeeze one more rating book out of it before it’s grounded.

H/T WVXU