The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced that the helicopter tour company whose sightseeing helicopter broke up in midair and crashed in New York City, killing the pilot and a family of five traveling from Spain, is shutting down its operations immediately.
In a statement posted on the X platform on Sunday, the FAA also announced it was launching an immediate review of New York Helicopter Tours' operating license and safety standards.
The move came just hours after New York Senator Chuck Schumer called on federal authorities to revoke New York Helicopter Tours' operating licenses.
The company's helicopter crashed mid-air and plunged into the Hudson River on Thursday, killing Spanish tourists and the pilot, a U.S. Navy veteran.
At a news conference on Sunday, before the FAA's announcement, Mr. Schumer said the company must ground all flights while the National Transportation Safety Board investigates the tragedy.
The Senate minority leader also asked the Federal Aviation Administration to step up safety checks on other helicopter tour companies, accusing them of “cutting corners on safety and putting profits ahead of people.”
Among the dead were passengers Agustin Escobar, 49, his wife Mercedes Camprubi Montal, 39, and their three children: Victor, 4, Mercedes, 8, and Agustin, 10.
The pilot was 36-year-old Shawnkes Johnson, a U.S. Navy veteran who received his commercial pilot's license in 2023.
“One of the things we can do to honor those lives and try to prevent incidents like this from happening is to do everything we can to make sure it doesn't happen again,” the senator said.
“We know one thing for sure about helicopter tour companies in New York: they have a deadly reputation.”
Thursday's crash has renewed concerns about the safety of sightseeing flights over New York City, a popular tourist destination that takes passengers high above the city for spectacular views of the Statue of Liberty, the World Trade Center and other landmarks.
Over the past two decades, five helicopters operating commercial sightseeing flights have crashed into the Hudson and East Rivers due to mechanical failure, pilot error or collisions, killing 20 people.
New York Helicopter Tours President Michael Roth did not respond to phone and email inquiries.
In the statement,
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
