Samantha MoilanenTwo pilots killed in a helicopter crash while battling Utah’s massive Widemouth 2 wildfire this month began their final journey home Friday to their families.
A procession for the firefighters — Chris Andersen, 64, of Stateline, Nevada, and Miles Elliott, 50, of Porterville, California — began at about 11 a.m., when the “fallen heroes” left a funeral home in Taylorsville.
Their remains were then escorted north along Interstate 215 before arriving at Salt Lake City International Airport to depart for home.
The men were killed Friday, Aug. 7, when their Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane went down while fighting the unwieldy Widemouth 2 Fire in south-central Utah.
It took more than a full day for first responders to safely reach the crash site, which became overwhelmed by flames.
“If we had not moved some of our responders and the hand crews out, they would have been trapped by the fire as well,” Sevier County Sheriff Nathan Curtis said at a news conference Sunday morning, the day after the pilots’ remains were recovered. “It was not an easy choice.”
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) The procession for two pilots killed battling the massive Widemouth 2 Fire passes through Taylorsville on Friday, Aug. 14, 2026.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) The procession was headed to Salt Lake City International Airport.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Captain Brian Christensen salutes as the procession for two pilots killed battling the massive Widemouth 2 Fire passes through Taylorsville on Friday, Aug. 14, 2026.
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) A member of the U.S. Forest Service wears a black band around his badge at Salt Lake City International Airport, where the remains of two helicopter pilots who died while fighting Utah's Widemouth 2 Fire last week were escorted to be flown home.
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) An American flag waves at Salt Lake City International Airport before an escort arrived for the two helicopter pilots who died while fighting the Widemouth 2 Fire near Fillmore on Aug. 7.
The helicopter that Andersen and Elliott were flying was operating under contract with the U.S. Forest Service; the pilots worked for Helicopter Transport Services.
The procession Friday was led by the U.S. Forest Service, with help from the state, U.S. Wildland Fire Service, Salt Lake City Fire Department, Unified Fire Authority and others, an official said.
Andersen was a U.S. Army veteran and civilian pilot whose flying career took him around the world, his brother said in a Facebook post. He was born in Iowa and made his home near Lake Tahoe.
Elliott was a Porterville, California, native and Porterville High School graduate who traveled the country fighting wildfires, his family said. He is survived by his fiancee, Briana Groves, and their son, Truxton.
Widemouth 2 has burned more than 129,000 acres near Fillmore. That’s nearly twice the size of Salt Lake City proper and roughly a quarter the size of Salt Lake County.
As of Friday morning, it was considered 65% contained, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Helicopters work on the Widemouth 2 Fire in Fillmore on Monday, Aug. 3, 2026.
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) Members of the U.S. Forest Service form an honor line at Salt Lake City International Airport during a ceremony to escort the remains of the two helicopter pilots who died.
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) Firefighters salute as a hearse enters Salt Lake City International Airport during a ceremony to escort the remains of the two helicopter pilots who died.
Correction • Aug. 14, 1:32 p.m.: This story has been updated to note that the procession began at a Taylorsville funeral home.
