2025 Hudson River helicopter crash
On April 10, 2025, a Bell 206 LongRanger IV on a sightseeing tour crashed into the Hudson River near Jersey City, New Jersey, across the river from New York City. All six onboard—a family of five and the pilot—were killed. The aircraft, which was operated by New York Helicopter, was on its eighth flight of the day.
Background
Aircraft
The aircraft involved in the accident was a Bell 206 LongRanger IV (L-4). Local excursion company New York Helicopter Charter Inc. was leasing the aircraft from Louisiana helicopter company Meridian Helicopters. According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records, it was built in 2004 and had an airworthiness certificate issued in 2016 that was valid until 2029. The helicopter's last major inspection was on March 1.
Passengers and crew
Six people were on board the helicopter. Law enforcement sources told ABC News that the occupants of the helicopter were a family of five from Barcelona, Spain, consisting of Agustín Escobar, Siemens CEO of Rail Infrastructure at Siemens Mobility, Mercè Camprubí Montal, Global Head of Siemens Energy Digital Commercialization and their three children, Agustín, Mercè and Victor (aged 10, 8, and 4). The pilot was 36-year-old Navy veteran Seankese Johnson.
Weather
There were winds of 9 to 12 mph (14 to 19 km/h) coming from the south and southeast, with occasional gusts up to 21 mph (34 km/h) around the time of the crash, according to a weather station. Visibility at the surface was good for up to 10 mi (16 km) but it was cloudy as a low pressure system moved into the region, bringing light rain in the afternoon and evening.
Operator
The operator of the helicopter was local excursion company New York Helicopter, which has also been known as New York Helicopter Charter Inc. and New York Helicopter Tours LLC. The company was founded in the 1990s by Michael Roth. New York Helicopter had two prior crashes. Over the last eight years, the company has been through a bankruptcy and faces ongoing lawsuits over alleged debts. In January, the company was sued for over US$1.4 million for non-payment of a helicopter lease. Another lender sued in February, saying the company had blocked repayments on a weeks-old loan and owed over $83,000. New York Helicopter has not filed a response in either case.
Accident
At 2:59 p.m. EDT, the helicopter took off from the Downtown Manhattan Heliport on its eighth flight of the day and traveled along the southern part of Manhattan and circled the Statue of Liberty before it flew up the western side of Manhattan. At 3:08 p.m., the helicopter turned around near the George Washington Bridge before turning south along the New Jersey shoreline.
Prior to the crash, the pilot radioed to say that he was returning to the helipad to refuel. About 18 minutes into the flight at 3:17 p.m. the helicopter experienced an in-flight breakup, the main rotor breaking off, causing it to fall at a 45-degree angle and crash upside-down into the Hudson River near the Newport neighborhood of Jersey City, New Jersey, opposite Pier 40 in New York City. The fuselage landed in 5-foot (1.5 m) deep waters, while other pieces landed in 75-foot (23 m) deep waters. The water temperature was 50 °F (10 °C) at the time of the crash.
Witnesses described hearing loud noises before seeing the helicopter fall apart mid-air, with debris falling into the river. Emergency responders arrived to find the helicopter submerged. Four people were pronounced dead at the scene, while two others succumbed to their injuries at Jersey City Medical Center. All bodies of the victims of the crash were recovered.
Investigation
The FAA confirmed it is investigating the crash along with the NTSB, Bell Textron and Rolls-Royce. The NTSB chair and investigators traveled to the site of the crash the same night and held their first media briefing the following day.
The main fuselage with the cockpit and cabin, the forward portion of the tail boom, the horizontal stabilizer finlets and the vertical fin, were recovered on April 11. Recovery efforts concluded on April 14 after divers using Side-scanning sonar recovered the helicopter’s main rotor, main gear box, tail rotor and a large portion of the tail boom. Some of the recovered parts will be sent to the NTSB laboratories in Washington for closer inspection.
The helicopter was not equipped with any flight recorders. No onboard video recorders or camera recorders have been recovered and none of the helicopter avionics onboard recorded information that could be used for the investigation.
NTSB investigators met with representatives from the helicopter's operator, New York Helicopter, to review operational records, policies and procedures, safety management systems and the pilot’s experience. Investigators also examined two exemplar helicopters.
Aftermath
The FAA temporarily prohibited drone pilots from flying near the crash site unless they have specific authorization.
The company CEO, Michael Roth, fired the director of operations shortly after the director agreed to voluntarily comply with an FAA request to suspend operations. Citing the appearance of retaliatory action against the director, the FAA issued an emergency suspension of the company's air-carrier certificate. Senator Chuck Schumer asked the FAA to rescind the company's license, and the FAA stated that it would also examine the company's safety record and license.
Reactions
Domestic
President Donald Trump offered condolences to the families and friends of the helicopter crash which he described as terrible in a message on Truth Social. He also said that the transportation secretary, Sean Duffy, and his staff were investigating and that "announcements as to exactly what took place, and how, will be made shortly".
New York City mayor Eric Adams said "Our hearts go out to the families of those who were onboard".
Roth said "we are devastated" over the crash. He clarified that the company has a director of maintenance who would have overseen the condition of the helicopter.
International
Spain's prime minister Pedro Sánchez called the incident "an unimaginable tragedy" in a post on X.