As crews continue to search for key parts of the helicopter that crashed into the Hudson River, they won’t find one piece of evidence that is usually critical to investigators.
“The helicopter was not equipped with any flight recorders. No onboard video recorders or camera recorders have been recovered and none of the helicopter avionics onboard recorded information that could be used for the investigation,” the National Transportation Safety Board said in a statement Saturday.
Thursday’s deadly accident claimed the lives of a family of five visiting from Spain and the pilot.
“Divers from the New York Police Department are continuing to search for the helicopter’s main rotor, main gear box, tail rotor and a large portion of the tail boom. Side-scanning sonar is being used to identify potential locations of wreckage,” the NTSB’s statement said.
According to officials, the last major inspection of the helicopter was on March 1, and before the crash it completed seven tour flights.
Now, lawmakers are calling on federal agencies to increase regulations and protocols for these types of helicopter tours.
“The company has an operating certificate from the [Federal Aviation Administration] that is called a ‘Part 91.’ It does not require the entire team of people who oversee or fly the helicopter to have the level of training and experience that commercial and passenger helicopter companies have to have,” Sen. Chuck Schumer said Sunday at a press conference.
He spoke at the Wall Street Heliport in Manhattan, where New York Helicopter Tours launched the fatal Bell 206 L-4 flight on Thursday.
Officials say the pilot, Seankese Johnson, was a Navy veteran who earned his commercial pilot’s license in 2023 and logged over 800 hours of flight time as of March.
“Right now, New York Helicopter Tours is under federal investigation for these deaths. But first, I am urging the FAA to pull their operating certificate immediately and cease flights until their full investigation is concluded,” Schumer added.
New York Helicopter Tours said it is fully cooperating with the federal investigation.
The Democratic senator also called for increased federal regulations at all New York City-area helicopter tour companies — flights he described as “risky.”
“I’m also demanding that the FAA increase what are called ‘ramp inspections’ at other metro-area helicopter tour companies,” he added. “A ramp inspection is a surprise inspection. They show up unannounced and check if things are on the level and the helicopters are doing the right thing.”
Schumer’s stance contrasts sharply with that of Mayor Eric Adams, who voiced full support for tourism helicopters in New York City during an interview with Fox 5 on Friday, stating he would not add further regulations.
“That is part of the attraction of businesses being in the city, people coming to the city, seeing the city from the air. As part of the attraction, what we must do is make sure it’s safe, make sure it is done correctly,” Adams said.
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