This data release consists of a series of videos used to derive remotely sensed estimates of surface flow velocity via particle image velocimetry (PIV). These data were acquired from the Tanana River near Nenana, Alaska, on July 24, 2019, along with field measurements of flow velocity used to assess the accuracy of image-derived velocity estimates. The videos were obtained using a Zenmuse X5 video camera deployed within a Meeker mount attached to the nose of a Robinson R44 helicopter. The data release includes a total of 14 individual videos obtained while the helicopter hovered at a series of different locations above the river channel to provide reach-scale coverage. Each of these videos was recorded at 30 frames per second while the helicopter hovered in a fixed location approximately 600 m above the river. The videos were not geo-referenced or stabilized to account for motion of the helicopter platform during acquisition, but users of these data could perform geo-referencing and stabilization operations using individual image frames extracted from the videos. The entire series of .mov format video files is contained within a zip archive.