The company which owned and operated the helicopter that crashed in New York City – killing six people – touts itself for providing comfort and safety to customers.
New York Helicopter runs tours over the Big Apple, giving visitors the chance to see many of the city’s iconic sights from above, including Central Park, One World Trade Centre and the Statue of Liberty. One of its Bell 206 aircrafts crashed on Thursday though – the New York City tourism sector’s third fatal chopper accident in the past two decades.
CEO of New York Helicopters, Michael Roth, said: “I’m absolutely devastated. The only thing I know by watching a video of the helicopter falling down, that the main rotor blades weren’t on the helicopter. And I haven’t seen anything like that in my 30 years being in business, in the helicopter business.” The company had leased the aircraft from its Louisiana-based owner.
The exact cause of the crash is yet to be established but an investigation crew is at the scene, which is near Pier 40 near West Village and a short distance from New York City’s financial district.
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All six passengers on board were killed, including three children. It is believed they were siblings and died with their parents. The pilot has also been confirmed deceased. Early reports in local media suggest the family were on holiday from Spain. Governor Kathy Hochul, of New York, said: “Six innocent souls have lost their lives, and we pray for them and their families.”
Eric Campoverde, 21, saw the crash unfold on Thursday afternoon. He told the New York Post he witnessed the chopper drop at a 45-degree angle and plunge into the waterway within “seconds.”
Eric, who is a construction worker, said: “I was like, ‘oh s***’. I was walking home from work when I saw the helicopter going down at a 45-degree angle. Then I heard and saw a big splash. It was going fast. It was maybe on top of the water for three or four seconds before it went under. It was fast.”
Chilling footage captures the cockpit crash into the river, which runs 315 miles from north to south primarily through eastern New York. In the clip, shared by a witness, the remains of the helicopter can be seen falling from the skies upside down and entering the water at some speed. A loud bang can then be heard in the footage.
The disaster is one of the deadliest helicopter crashes in New York City in nearly 20 years. Nine people were killed when a Eurocopter AS350 tourist helicopter with five Italian tourists on board collided with a small private plane over the Hudson River near Frank Sinatra Park in Hoboken in 2009. That flight was operated by Liberty Helicopter Sightseeing Tours.
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