New York authorities have named two of the grownup victims who died in Thursday’s deadly helicopter crash as Agustín Escobar and Mercè Camprubí Montal, a married couple from Spain.
A spokesperson for Metropolis Corridor stated in a single day that they had been among the many three adults and three kids to have died within the accident. The names of the opposite victims haven’t but been formally launched.
Within the devastating incident, the chopper appeared to interrupt in midair and crashed the wrong way up into the Hudson River. The reason for the crash is unknown and is underneath investigation.
The three kids had been believed to be the couple’s kids and the third grownup sufferer was the pilot. Photographs posted on the helicopter firm’s web site confirmed the couple and their kids smiling as they boarded simply earlier than the flight took off.
Escobar was a senior government with the German know-how agency Siemens and was the CEO of rail infrastructure at its Siemens Mobility Division. Beforehand he was the CEO and president of Siemens Spain, in line with an organization announcement.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic helicopter crash in which Agustin Escobar and his family lost their lives. Our heartfelt condolences go out to all their loved ones,” Christoph Erhard, head of company media relation relations for Siemens, stated in a press release.
Pedro Sanchez, the prime minister of Spain, stated in a press release on X, translated by the Spanish Embassy in Washington, that the crash was “an unimaginable tragedy.”
— Embassy of Spain USA (@SpainInTheUSA) April 11, 2025
Jersey Metropolis Mayor Steve Fulop stated on X Friday morning that the daddy within the Spanish household was within the U.S. for a enterprise journey earlier than his household flew out to spend a few days in New York Metropolis.
“They were celebrating the mom’s 40th bday with the tourist helicopter flight yesterday. The kids were all 11yo and younger,” he wrote.
Fulop stated a brother-in-law of the household is flying in Friday morning and officers are working with the health worker to expedite the discharge of the our bodies again to Spain.
The helicopter, one of many vacationer flights that take within the sights of Manhattan, took off from the Wall Road heliport at 2:59 p.m. It misplaced management after it turned on the George Washington Bridge to maneuver alongside the New Jersey shoreline a while after 3 p.m., officers stated.
Video posted to social media confirmed the helicopters plunging into the river.
An eyewitnesses described seeing the helicopter crumble because it hit the river.
Witness Bruce Wall stated he noticed the helicopter “falling apart” in midair, with the tail and propeller coming off. The propeller was nonetheless spinning with out the plane because it fell, he stated.
“It sounded like something was just like breaking,” Bruce Wall, who took video of the crash, advised NBC’s Sam Brock. “At that point I’m pretty sure the helicopter hit the water and the blades were just starting to come down. The tail was a couple feet back.”
Michael Roth, the CEO of New York Helicopter Excursions, advised The Telegraph that the pilot had stated he wanted gasoline earlier than the crash.
“He [the pilot] called in that he was landing and that he needed fuel, and it should have taken him about three minutes to arrive, but 20 minutes later, he didn’t arrive,” Roth advised the paper, including, “We’re all devastated.”
President Donald Trump known as the crash “terrible” in a Reality Social Publish Thursday evening. “God bless the families and friends of the victims,” he stated.
Mayor Eric Adams and FDNY and NYPD officers held a information convention to supply an replace on the Hudson River helicopter crash.
NBC Aviation analyst Jeff Guzzetti stated on NBC’s “TODAY” present Friday: “There was some sort of sudden in flight failure that occurred to the point where the pilot didn’t have an opportunity to make a forced landing or a mayday call, so something happened abruptly.”
He famous climate does not seem like an element, though there have been some gusts and winds within the space.
“We’re looking at some sort of hardware issue that perhaps could have been prompted by an inappropriate pilot response, which could have been prompted by something like a bird strike. We just don’t know yet,” he stated. Guzzetti famous the incident has the marks of mast bumping — when the rotor hub strikes the principle rotor mast — however the wreckage must be checked out to make sure.
The Nationwide Transportation Security Board investigation will look into the pilot, the wreckage of the chopper, and whether or not the passengers had any footage on board, and can decide if there have been any birds or sturdy winds within the space on the time of the crash, Guzzetti stated.
