Federal safety officials on Wednesday released a preliminary report on the April 10 helicopter crash in New York City that killed the pilot and five passengers. The chopper separated into pieces before crashing.
The helicopter was above the Hudson River flying toward Jersey City, New Jersey, at around 675 feet above sea level when just before 3:15 p.m. it began a rapid descent. Witnesses heard multiple bangs, the National Transportation Safety Board said in its report, as the aircraft separated into three parts: the fuselage and engine, the main rotor system and the tail boom.
The NTSB didn’t offer possible causes for the helicopter’s mechanical failure and crash and noted no data or video recording devices were on board. The pilot, Navy SEAL veteran Sean Johnson, was wearing sunglasses that could record video and audio, but the eyewear wasn’t recovered.
In addition to Johnson, 36, the passengers, Siemens Rail Infrastructure CEO Agustin Escobar, 49, his wife, Merce Camprubi Montal, 39, and their children, Agustin, 10, Mercedes, 8, and Victor, 4, all perished in the crash.
The company that operated the flight, New York Helicopter Tours, shut down operations after the tragedy. The Federal Aviation Administration said in the days after the crash that it would be looking over the company’s operating license and safety record, according to The Associated Press.
In its report, the NTSB said the helicopter was on its eighth flight of the day at the time of the crash and that it had most recently been inspected on Feb. 27.
The helicopter flew about 50 hours between its final inspection and the crash.
