New York Helicopter Excursions, the operator of the chopper that fell into the Hudson River on Thursday, killing a pilot and household of 5 visiting from Spain, is shutting down operations.
The Federal Aviation Administration made that announcement late Sunday, saying the corporate would stop operations instantly.
“Additionally, the FAA will be launching an immediate review of the tour operator’s license and safety record,” the FAA assertion learn, partially.
— The FAA ✈️ (@FAANews) April 14, 2025
The transfer comes hours after New York Sen. Chuck Schumer known as on federal authorities to revoke the corporate’s permits, and particularly mentioned the FAA ought to ramp up security inspections for different helicopter tour corporations, accusing them of “cutting corners and putting profits over people.”
The victims included passengers Agustin Escobar, 49, his spouse, Mercè Camprubí Montal, 39, and their three youngsters, Victor, 4, Mercedes, 8, and Agustin, 10. The pilot was Seankese Johnson, 36, a U.S. Navy veteran who obtained his business pilot’s license in 2023.
“One of the things we can do to honor those lives and try to save others is to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Schumer mentioned. “We know there is one thing for sure about New York City’s helicopter tour companies: they have a deadly track record.”
Within the final 20 years, 5 helicopters on business sightseeing flights have fallen into the Hudson and East rivers on account of mechanical failures, pilot errors or collisions, killing 20 individuals.
In response to Schumer’s requires extra oversight, an trade group, Jap Area Helicopter Council, mentioned Manhattan’s sightseeing choppers “already function below essentially the most stringent of rules.”
“We stand ready to work with leaders on finding ways to ensure the safety and preservation of our businesses and aviation community,” the group mentioned.
Critics of the trade have lengthy sought to restrict or solely ban nonessential helicopter flights from taking off above the town, although they’ve had restricted success. After New York Metropolis capped the variety of flights that would take off from Manhattan heliports at 30,000 yearly in 2016, many corporations moved operations to New Jersey.
Two years later, in 2018, 5 individuals died when a helicopter providing “open door” flights crashed within the East River after a passenger’s restraint tether snagged on a gas change, stopping the engine.
The reason for Thursday’s crash will not be but decided. In response to Schumer, rescue divers have been persevering with to seek for the helicopter’s essential rotor and meeting gear field, which might give clues about what occurred.
