NBC New York’s Checkey Beckford speaks to a witness running along the river who saw the helicopter crash.
A fatal crash Thursday became the latest incident in a long history of helicopter wrecks in the New York City area.
The latest crash occurred in the Hudson River near the West Side Highway and Spring Street shortly after 3 p.m. ET, with officials saying multiple people died.
Several helipads are located throughout Manhattan, with recreational aircraft and commercial and tourist flights filling the tightly controlled airspace.
In 2019, two crashes occurred within one month. A pilot was killed on June 10, 2019 after hitting the roof of a skyscraper amid poor weather conditions. The helicopter struck the 750-foot AXA Equitable building, sparking a fire that forced office workers to flee.
Just weeks prior to that incident, on May 15, a helicopter crashed into the Hudson River and sank, but the pilot managed to safely escape.
Following Thursday's crash, New York City mayor Eric Adams confirmed that all six people on board died, including three adults and three children. It was the deadliest helicopter crash in the New York City area since 2018, when five people were killed when a no-door helicopter crashed and sank in the East River, leaving passengers trapped in their safety harnesses.
The Associated Press reported that at least 38 people died in helicopter accidents in New York City since 1977 when restrictions were placed on where choppers could land in the area.
Here's a look at previous incidents, courtesy of AP.
2021: A helicopter sustained significant damage during a hard landing at a Manhattan helipad. The pilot and a co-pilot were not hurt.
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2019: A helicopter used for executive travel hits the roof of a Manhattan skyscraper in restricted airspace. The pilot is killed.
2019: A charter helicopter goes into the Hudson River and sinks while being maneuvered at a heliport. The pilot escapes.
2018: Five people drown when a charter helicopter offering “open door” flights crashes in the East River . The pilot survives.
2011: Three people die when a helicopter carrying a family outing plunges into the East River.
2009: A sightseeing helicopter carrying Italian tourists collides with a private plane over the Hudson River, killing nine.
2007: A sightseeing helicopter drops into the Hudson River after experiencing a mechanical problem after lifting off from a West Side heliport. Everyone makes it out safely.
2005: A corporate helicopter carrying MBNA Corp. executives falls into the East river after taking off from the East 34th Street heliport. The pilot is seriously injured but everyone survives.
2005: A sightseeing helicopter goes into the East River while trying to take off from the Wall Street heliport. A British tourist nearly drowns.
2004: A WNBC news helicopter hits a building in Brooklyn and disintegrates while covering a story. All occupants survive.
1997: One person is killed and a second is badly injured when a helicopter owned by the Colgate-Palmolive Company falls into the East River after taking off from the 60th Street heliport.
1990: One person dies after the pilot of an Island Helicopter air taxi misjudges the wind during a takeoff from the East 34th Street heliport and flies into the river.
1988: A passenger drowns when a sightseeing helicopter loses power and makes a forced landing in the East River.
1986: An NBC radio traffic reporter dies when the helicopter she is riding in loses lift, hits a fence and crashes into the Hudson.
1985: A passenger drowns when a sightseeing flight operated by New York Helicopters crashes into the East River after taking off from the East 34th Street heliport.
1983: A seaplane coming in for a landing on the East River collides with a police helicopter over the Brooklyn waterfront, killing four people.
1981: Hijackers seize a sightseeing helicopter and order the pilot to fly to a federal jail in Manhattan in an unsuccessful attempt to free a prisoner waiting on the roof.
1977: A rotor breaks loose from a New York Airways helicopter on a landing pad atop the Pan Am Building and kills five people, including one on the street two blocks away. The helipad closes after the accident.
