Helicopter pilot blasts passenger who tried to grab controls while above the Grand Canyon

A helicopter passenger in the co-pilot seat made the dangerous move to grasp a lever in the cockpit during a Maverick Airlines ride over the Grand Canyon.

Scary footage shows the pilot sternly telling the tourist “No! That will kill us!” while grabbing ahold of the woman’s arm to prevent a disaster.

Cherlin Bijlsma, 27, from the Netherlands posted the now-viral TikTok, with the caption:“Tourist decides to grab lever during Grand Canyon flight.”

The original eight-second clip shows the shocking moment the woman was reprimanded for trying to grab the rotor break mid-air on the popular tourist excursion. The rotor break is designed for use on the ground to stop the propeller from moving and could have sent the helicopter plummeting to the ground.

Bijlsma said of the incident: “When the pilot scolded her... I saw that she smiled at the pilot.”

“It was an awkward smile. I’m not sure if she said anything back.”

Post-incident the bucket-list helicopter flight was a success and the tour group landed safely after enjoying the views.

The video has been viewed over 2.8 million times since being uploaded last month and the dangerous interaction sparked dismay in the comments with many saying that the pilot “should have ended the trip immediately” and was not to blame for his reaction.

“It blows my mind the amount of civilians don’t follow the simple childhood rule of if you don’t know don’t touch it”, wrote one shocked user.

Another commented in support of the pilot’s stern approach: “Imagine how entitled one must be to both grab a flight control while in the cockpit and then argue with the pilot when he checks you.”

Others were alarmed that a “don’t touch” instruction was not included in the passenger safety briefing.

Late last year a pilot and their passenger miraculously survived a helicopter crash after they heard a “pop” sound while flying above Fresno, California.