A sightseeing helicopter in New York City shattered midair before crashing upside-down into the Hudson River, tragically claiming the lives of the pilot and a family of five Spanish tourists on April 10.
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A source familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press that the victims included Siemens executive Agustin Escobar, his wife Mercè Camprubí Montal, a global manager at an energy technology company, their three children, and the pilot. The source, speaking anonymously, was not authorized to share details publicly.
Escobar, along with his wife and three children, had arrived in New York City from Barcelona earlier that day, according to law enforcement sources cited by the New York Post. The ill-fated helicopter was operated by New York Helicopter, a tour company renowned for prioritizing customer comfort and safety.
Footage of the crash captured fragments of the aircraft plummeting through the air before striking the water near the Jersey City shoreline in New Jersey.
Dear God
— Phil Holloway ✈️ (@PhilHollowayEsq) April 10, 2025
The rotor came off this helicopter
There was nothing the pilot could do after that
Maintenance history will be a key part of this investigation
A family was reportedly onboard doing an aerial tour
Just awful 😢
pic.twitter.com/uU1IGJmpXE
Bruce Wall, a witness at the scene, told the AP the helicopter as “falling apart” midair, with its tail and main rotor detaching. He also observed that the main rotor kept spinning on its own as the helicopter fell to the ground.
New York Helicopter Tours CEO Says He’s ‘Devastated’ in Wake of the Crash
“I’m absolutely devastated,” New York Helicopter Tours CEO Michael Roth told The Post.
“The only thing I know by watching a video of the helicopter falling down, that the main rotor blades weren’t on the helicopter,” Roth added. “And I haven’t seen anything like that in my 30 years being in business, in the helicopter business.”
“This is horrific,” Roth told the outlet. “But you gotta remember something, these are machines and they break.”
Rescue boats quickly surrounded the submerged aircraft just minutes after it crashed near the end of a maintenance pier connected to a ventilation tower for the Holland Tunnel. By 8 p.m., recovery crews, using a floating crane, successfully lifted the wrecked helicopter from the water.
The bodies were recovered from the river, according to Mayor Eric Adams per the AP.
Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration identified the helicopter as a Bell 206. a model widely used in commercial and government aviation. It’s popular with sightseeing companies, TV news, and police departments. Originally developed for the U.S. Army, it was later adapted for other uses, with thousands produced over the years.
The National Transportation Safety Board announced it will launch an investigation.