- The company involved in a fatal helicopter crash last week is shutting down.
- The crash killed a tourist family of five as well as the pilot.
- The helicopter detached from its rotor and crashed into the Hudson River.
A helicopter tour company that was involved in last week’s deadly crash on the Hudson River is shutting down its operations.
On Sunday, the Federal Aviation Administration announced that New York Helicopter Tours would be shutting down following a crash that killed six people, including three children, per ABC.
The deaths occurred after the tourist helicopter fell into New York City’s Hudson River last Thursday.
The FAA announced that it will be reviewing the company’s operator’s license and safety record. The agency added that it is analyzing airplane and helicopter hotspots around the country and will be holding a helicopter safety panel later this month to discuss findings, risk and mitigation options.
“Safety is the FAA’s No. 1 priority, and we will not hesitate to act to protect the flying public,” the agency said in a statement, per ABC.
Who was on board the helicopter?
There were six people onboard the helicopter when it crashed, a tourist family from Spain and the pilot.
Agustín Escobar and his wife, Mercè Camprubí Montal, along with their three children, ages 4, 9 and 11, were visiting New York City and were on the helicopter for a sightseeing tour, according to CNN. Escobar and Camprubí were both executives for Siemens, a European automation company.
The pilot was 36-year-old Seankese Johnson, a Navy veteran from Chicago.
Johnson enlisted in the Navy in 2006 and served until 2018. After leaving the Navy he earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Southern Utah University in 2023, per The New York Times.
He had spent years flying aircraft. After his time in the Navy, he flew helicopter tours in Chicago and recently moved to New York.
What happened in the crash?
According to accounts, after flying past the Statue of Liberty and the George Washington Bridge, Johnson was piloting the helicopter south over the Hudson River when the crash occurred.
Witness accounts and videos show that the helicopter detached from its rotor and the body slammed hard into the river, according to The New York Times.