New York Sen. Chuck Schumer called on federal authorities to revoke permission to operate the Helicopter Tour Company, which invaded the Hudson River last week, killing five visitors from a veteran pilot of Spain and Navy Seal.
At a press conference on Sunday, Schumer said the company, a New York helicopter tour, should suspend all flights as the National Transportation Safety Board investigates a fatal crash.
Senate Democratic leaders called on the Federal Aviation Administration to step up safety inspections at other helicopter tour companies, accusing them of “cutting corners and adding benefits to people.”
The victims include passenger Agustin Escobar, 49, his wife, Merce Campulvi Montal, 39, three children, Victor, 4, Mercedes, 8, Agustin, 10.
“One thing you can do to respect those lives and try to save others is to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Schumer said. “I know there’s one thing I’m sure about New York City helicopter tour companies. They have a fatal track record.”
Mayor Eric Adams said he opposes new restrictions on New York’s tourist helicopter excursions. However, the crash on Thursday updated safety concerns regarding such flights. This flight is a popular tourist draw with passengers bubbling high above the city, offering views of the Statue of Liberty, One World Trade Centre and other landmarks.
Over the past 20 years, five helicopters on commercial tourism flights have fallen to Hudson and East Rivers as a result of mechanical failure, pilot errors or collisions, killing 20 people.
Michael Ross, president of the New York Helicopter Tour, did not respond to phone or email inquiries for comment. The company said in a statement released on its website that it is working with authorities in the investigation.
Manhattan Tourism Choppers “operate under the strictest regulations,” Manhattan Tourism Choppers responded to Schumer’s demands for more surveillance, the Helicopter Council of Eastern Region said.
“We are ready to work with our leaders to find ways to ensure the safety and preservation of our business and the aviation community,” the group said.
Industry critics have long sought to limit or prohibit non-essential helicopter flights from taking off on cities, but they have had limited success. Many businesses moved operations to New Jersey after New York City limited the number of flights that could take off from Manhattan heliports in 2016 at 30,000 a year.
Two years later, in 2018, five people died when a helicopter providing an “open door” flight in the East River crashed on the East River after passenger restraints stopped the engine on a fuel switch.
The cause of the Thursday crash has not yet been determined. According to Schumer, rescue divers were continuing to search for the helicopter’s main rotor and assembly gearbox.
Offenhartz writes for the Associated Press.
