Family of five among the dead in New York chopper crash

Six people, including three children, have been killed after a helicopter crashed into New York City’s Hudson River this morning.

The fire department said it received a report of a helicopter in the water at 3.17 pm local time (5.17 am Friday AEST).

Videos posted on social media showed the aircraft mostly submerged, upside down in the water.

Witness Bruce Wall said he saw the helicopter “falling apart” in midair, with the tail and propeller coming off.

The propeller was still spinning without the aircraft as it fell, he said.

9News has now confirmed all six people in the helicopter were killed in the crash.

Aboard the aircraft was a family of five, including three children, and the pilot.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said all six bodies had been recovered.

“Our hearts go out to the family of those who were on board,” Adams said.

New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch said four people had died at the scene, while two were taken to hospital where they succumbed to their injuries.

When the helicopter hit the water, officials believe it was inverted, leaving the cabin visible in the water, Tisch said.

She also confirmed reports that the helicopter stopped in mid-air and pieces of the helicopter were falling off before it hit the water were consistent with 911 reports.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

The family were visiting the US from Spain.

The fire department said it had units on scene performing rescue operations.

Multiple rescue boats were seen on video circling the aircraft.

The rescue craft were near a site close to the Manhattan waterfront, near the end of a long maintenance pier for one of the ventilation towers for the Holland Tunnel.

Lesly Camacho, a hostess at a restaurant along the river in Hoboken, New Jersey, said she saw the helicopter spinning uncontrollably before it slammed into the water.

“There was a bunch of smoke coming out. It was spinning pretty fast, and it landed in the water really hard,” she said in a phone interview.

Dani Horbiak was at her home in Jersey City, New Jersey, when she heard what sounded like “several gunshots in a row, almost, in the air”.

She looked out her window and saw the chopper “splash in several pieces into the river.”

“Due to a helicopter crash in the Hudson River, in the vicinity of the West Side Highway and Spring Street, expect emergency vehicles and traffic delays in the surrounding areas,” the NYPD said in a social media post.

FlightRadar24 reported the aircraft to be a Bell 206L-4 LongRanger IV, based on ADS-B tracking data.

The helicopter flew for about 16 minutes before going down into the water, according to analysis by CNN and FlightRadar24.

The flight path shows the aircraft took off from lower Manhattan and did a circle near the Statue of Liberty before flying up the Hudson River to the George Washington Bridge at about 1000 feet (305 metres). At that point it turned back south, ultimately coming to rest in the water near New Jersey.

The path up the Hudson is a popular sightseeing route.

The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed it is investigating the situation alongside the National Transportation Safety Board. The NTSB is leading the investigation and will provide updates.

“A Bell 206 helicopter crashed and is submerged in the Hudson River in New York City,” the FAA said in a statement.

What we know

The flight was operated by New York Helicopters, officials said.

No one answered the phones at the company’s offices in New York and New Jersey.

A person who answered the phone at the home of the company’s owner, Michael Roth, declined to comment.

However Roth told the New York Post he was devastated and had “no clue” why the crash happened.

“The only thing I know by watching a video of the helicopter falling down, that the main rotor blades weren’t on the helicopter,” the Post quoted him as saying.

He added that he had not seen such a thing happen during his 30 years in the helicopter business, but noted: “These are machines, and they break.”

Emails seeking comment were sent to attorneys who have represented Roth in the past.

Video of the crash suggested that a “catastrophic mechanical failure” left the pilot with no chance to save the helicopter, said Justin Green, an aviation lawyer who was a helicopter pilot in the Marine Corps.

It is possible the helicopter’s main rotors struck the tail boom, breaking it apart and causing the cabin to free fall, Green said.

“They were dead as soon as whatever happened happened,” Green said.

“There’s no indication they had any control over the craft. No pilot could have prevented that accident once they lost the lifts. It’s like a rock falling to the ground. It’s heartbreaking.”