It was a Piper!
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...New York, in particular, has been known within the industry as pretty much bursting at the seams when it comes to trying to squeeze in all of the aircraft that would like to fly into and out of the area. The aircraft that struck the helicopter (which was flying a pre-established sightseeing route out of Manhattan) was trying to weave its way around the Teeterborough, New Jersey, airport. That airfield is popular with general aviation aircraft owners, all of whom must compete with jetliners in navigating around New York City.
Normally, there’s hardly a problem once a jetliner can get off the ground and into its assigned corridors. But issues occur whenever light aircraft coming from different directions enter or start leaving what the Federal Aviation Administration calls ‘Class B’ airspace. It’s also a problem when rotary wing aircraft and fixed wing aircraft are maneuvering about within that space, but so far the U.S. regulatory agency for aviation seems unwilling to do much about it, even when an avoidable tragedy such as what just occurred intrudes upon the public’s consciousness.
Sadly, neither aircraft was dialed in or listening to a common radio frequency which, if they had been, might have helped to avoid the collision in the first place.
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