The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said the helicopter that crashed into the Hudson River last Thursday was not equipped with any flight recorders, a device that could have contributed to shedding light on the cause of the accident in which six people were killed.
"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 NTSB said.
The agency added that the helicopter had its last major inspection on March 1, less than a month and a half before the crash. The pilot, 36-year-old Sean Johnson, was on his his eight flight of the day with a Spanish family of five when the aircraft fell into the frigid waters.
The NTSB said it recovered the main fuselage, including the cockpit and cabin, as well as other parts of the helicopter. It will send some of the parts to Washington D.C. for further inspection.
The fatal crash involved a Bell 206L-4 LongRanger IV helicopter operated by New York Helicopter Tours. Onboard were the Spanish family—Siemens executive Agustin Escobar, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal, who also worked at the company and their three children—along with the pilot.
Johnson's Facebook profile showed he had recently moved to the city to continue his aviation career. In fact, his profile picture, uploaded in late March, shows the former Navy SEAL piloting a plane over New York City.
The picture is a still from a video Johnson uploaded two days before in the helicopter with the caption "When it all comes together." Comments congratulated him. He was operating the same helicopter model, a Bell 206, when the aircraft suddenly lost control and crashed into the river.
Reports detailed that Johnson the base shortly after taking off that they were running out of fuel. The helicopter crash moments later, splitting in half a little over 15 minutes after taking off.
Michael Roth, CEO of New York Helicopter Tours, told media outlets he's still unsure how the crash happened, only confirming that his pilot had reported a fuel issue before vanishing from radar. The company shut down after the crash.
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