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 released its preliminary report on the April tourist helicopter crash over the Hudson River that killed six people (pilot and a family of five) following an in-flight breakup.
Witnesses reported hearing loud "bangs" and seeing the helicopter's tail boom and main rotor system separate from the fuselage mid-flight, followed by a rapid descent confirmed by ADS-B data.
Investigators are scrutinizing surveillance videos of the aircraft's disintegration, but the helicopter lacked a black box and the pilot's potentially recording sunglasses were not recovered.
The wreckage is being studied, and the final NTSB report detailing the probable cause is not expected for at least a year.

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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.