Chopper Carrying Siemens Spain CEO Had Mechanical Issue Months Before Crash: Report
A sightseeing helicopter carrying Agustin Escobar, the CEO of Siemens Spain, and his family crashed into the Hudson River in New York on Thursday, killing them and the pilot.
According to records from the Federal Aviation Administration, New York Helicopter's Bell206L-4 LongRanger IV aircraft suffered a gearbox assembly mechanical issue last September.
Investigations are being conducted to find out what caused the plane to plummet from the sky and fall into the river.
The investigation will also look into the pilot's experience, the Big Apple company that conducts the sightseeing trips, and the still-unfinished wreckage.
The team will also look at the maintenance performed on the fatal aircraft, particularly the fulfilment of two recent FAA safety airworthiness guidelines for Bell 206L model helicopters.
According to records, the Bell206L-4 LongRanger IV aircraft was constructed in 2004 and had flown 12,728 hours before needing repairs. It received an airworthiness certificate in 2016 that was valid until 2029.
The less than 18-minute trip took off from a downtown heliport at approximately 3 pm. It sailed north along the skyline of Manhattan, then back south towards the Statue of Liberty, per radar data.
Siemens CEO Agustin Escobar, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal, and their three young children, Augustin, 10, Mercedes, 8, and Victor, 4, boarded the helicopter and took off from Manhattan's Downtown Skyport at around 1:50 pm.
The family from Barcelona, Spain, was flown by Sean Johnson, 36, a Navy SEAL veteran who recently relocated to New York City for his still-emerging aviation career. The helicopter reportedly crashed approximately 25 minutes into its air tour.
The helicopter was seen in a terrifying video collapsing in midair before plunging into the river close to Jersey City, New Jersey's waterfront, with at least one rotor still spinning while other components of the machine splashed down in different directions.
Jennifer Homendy, the chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, said on Friday that the rotors on the lost aircraft are still missing. NYPD divers continue to seek several smashed bits of the craft.
Michael Roth, the CEO of New York Helicopter, claimed to have "no clue" what transpired in the deadly incident. “I'm absolutely devastated,” Roth said to The New York Post following the fatal crash.
In June 2013, a Bell 206 helicopter carrying four Swedish tourists lost power and crashed into the Hudson River; fortunately, the pilot and four family members survived.
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