Tour helicopter crashes into East River, pilot scrambles to safety [BREAKING STORY, 5 submerged]

NY Post ^ | March 11, 2018 | By Larry Celona, Tina Moore, Joe Marino and Max Jaeger

[Enchante]

A tourist helicopter plunged into the East River on Sunday night, leaving at least five people trapped inside the sinking vessel while the pilot scrambled to safety, police sources said.

The Eurocopter AS350 went down around 88th Street, near Gracie Mansion, at about 7:15 p.m., sources said.

The pilot was able to get out and climb aboard a raft — but five others remained trapped inside the upside-down helicopter, according to sources.

[old curmudgeon]

If anyone is still following this:

The video link I posted was of the wrong tour company.

I googled NY tours and the copter make and model and the result indicated that was the only tour company using that equipment.

Wrong.

Also the latest news reports that the crashed chopper had emergency deployed floats and they were deployed, only one side collapsed causing it to tip over and end up upside down.

So as usual, it demonstrates that until the facts are known guessing is dangerous.

[jebeier]

I have never had the pleasure of taking the training myself. I just heard the horror stories. But people who take it know that if they don’t take it, they will not survive a helicopter ditching into water, so they take the training.

Thanks for all the great first-person details.

[Callahan]

This was an open-door “Photography Tour” where the passengers wear both seat belts and 8-point harnesses so they can lean out for photos. The harnesses did include emergency knives for cutting the restraint but in the shock of the moment it’s hardly surprising they were unable to free themselves.

[New Perspective]

I have flow in helicopters and many different types of aircraft and also fly as a photographer from time to time. When the safety briefing is given I pay attention then orient myself as fast as possible to the aircraft, ie, seat belt harness release, etc. From experience 99% of the non aviation people I fly with pay ZERO attention to the briefings or safety. I have a feeling this was the situation, they are pumped to go flying and failed to realize the most important part of the flight was getting out of the aircraft, alive.