NTSB: Crews recover key components of helicopter that crashed in the Hudson River

Additionally, the FAA will also be launching an immediate review of the tour operator's license and safety record.

Matt Trapani and Tony Caputo

Apr 15, 2025, 11:23 AM

Updated 2 hr ago

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Crews have recovered key components from a New York City tour helicopter that crashed in the Hudson River last week.
Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board said that divers recovered “the helicopter’s main rotor system, including the transmission, and the roof beam. They also recovered the tail rotor system.”
Officials say that the parts will be taken to a secure location for further examination.
“Recovery efforts are now finished,” the NTSB stated.
Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration has issued an emergency order to ground New York Helicopter Charter, Inc. – the company that operated the helicopter that crashed.
“The FAA is taking this action in part because after the company’s director of operations voluntarily shut down flights, he was fired,” a spokesperson for the agency wrote in a statement.
The FAA stated that it has begun a comprehensive review of New York Helicopter Charter, Inc.’s operations.
Monday's coverage
Six people were killed in the crash. The victims included passengers Agustin Escobar, 49, his wife, Mercè Camprubí Montal, 39, and their three children, Victor, 4, Mercedes, 8, and Agustin, 10. The pilot was Seankese Johnson, 36, a U.S. Navy veteran who received his commercial pilot’s license in 2023.
The cause of the crash has not yet been determined.
The NTSB is asking anyone who might have videos or photos of the crash to email them to witness@ntsb.gov.
The Associated Press wire services contributed to this report.