F/W dude here, who's admittedly out of his element in analyzing this accident. Though I'd really be interested in hearing from someone who regularly operates helos in the LA basin to understand if IFR ops there are even a practical option. I could believe that ATC congestion might wipe out the whole time/convenience argument of flying a helo in the first place. But at the same time, if there was ever a day when going to the trouble of filing and then just flying in the clouds (vs. trying to avoid them) would have been the safer route, it was a day like last Sunday.
