NTSB Releases Preliminary Report on New York Helicopter Accident

Agency is scrutinizing video from the sightseeing tour crash that killed the pilot and a family of five in April.

Meg Godlewski

Friday, May 09, 2025 at 11:41 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

National Transportation Safety Board team members survey the wreckage recovered from the Bell 206 L-4 helicopter that crashed into the Hudson River on April 10 near New York City. [Credit: NTSB]

Key Takeaways:

The NTSB's preliminary report on an April tourist helicopter crash over the Hudson River confirms an in-flight breakup, killing the pilot and a family of five.
Witnesses reported "loud bangs" before the tail boom and main rotor system separated from the fuselage, with ADS-B data showing the helicopter entered a rapid descent from approximately 675 feet.
The investigation notes the helicopter lacked a black box and the pilot's potential video-recording sunglasses were not recovered, while operational details show the aircraft was on its eighth tour flight of the day.

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The National Transportation Safety Board has released the preliminary report on April’s in-flight breakup and crash of a tourist helicopter in New York.

Investigators from both the NTSB and the FAA are scrutinizing video recordings from surveillance cameras that caught the aircraft’s disintegration as it flew over the Hudson River corridor. The crash killed the pilot and a family of five.