Sounds like the pilot pulled a Ted Kennedy.
The East River is a lot deeper than the pond Teddy left Mary Jo in. I’m waiting on more facts before judging.
Not unless he was drunk. It’s sort of a myth anyway that the captain always goes down with the ship.
No, sounds like he was lucky to get out. Likely nothing he could do to help anyone else. He was probably just lucky enough that his familiarity with the aircraft let his hand find and easily operate the seatbelt, door handle, etc.
I’ve seen more than a few non-fliers fumble the seatbelts in an aircraft when all they needed to do was twist the buckle. And for mere mortals, diving underwater in freezing water to try to open a helo door and then unstrap people... lets just say, the average person will not get it done. Hands get numb and ineffective very very fast.
I wouldn’t begin to say anything against the pilot without knowing all the details. Other articles say it was engine trouble, and the chopper turned over and sank pretty quickly (see video). I doubt he could have gotten anyone else out or he would have. Let’s see what facts emerge.
What was he suppose to do ?
Not me. He touched down slow, at an angle and landed fairly gentle on the water. He could have told the passengers on the intercom they were going down in water and as soon as the aircraft is in the water and stopped, unbuckle and exit the helicopter....I dunno. Just speculating.
The pilot probably is a Kennedy.
“The pilot was able to get out and climb aboard a raft “
A Broward County deputy?
“A tourist helicopter plunged into the East River on Sunday night, ,,”
Not even in my drunkest moment would I be in NYC much less in a helicopter over NYC. That’s for stupid European tourists.
Can you say with 100% certainty that you would have opted to die with the passengers?