Rescue workers and emergency personnel work at the scene of a helicopter crash on the Hudson River near lower Manhattan in New York, U.S., as seen from Newport, New Jersey, April 10, 2025.
Eduardo Munoz | Reuters
A helicopter crashed into the Hudson River off of Manhattan Thursday, killing all six people on board, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said.
It was the deadliest helicopter crash in the New York area in years. The cause of the crash is under investigation, officials said.
Some of the victims were a family visiting from Spain, officials said. Three adults, including the pilot, and three children, were on board the helicopter.
Four people were pronounced dead at the scene and two more later died after they were removed from the scene.
Video posted on social media showed a helicopter upside down in the Hudson River.
The helicopter was a Bell 206L-4 LongRanger, according to FlightRadar24, a flight-tracking site.
An eyewitness told NBC New York that she saw the helicopter lose a propeller and that the aircraft’s nose pointed downward. A witness’s video showed a helicopter plummeting to the river.
First responders walk along Pier 40, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in New York, across from where a helicopter went down in the Hudson River in Jersey City, N.J.
Jennifer Peltz | AP
The flight path showed the helicopter leaving from the Downtown Manhattan Heliport on the southeastern tip of Manhattan, then flying up the Hudson River, getting up to an altitude of about 1,100 feet, and turning around by Fort Lee, New Jersey, with last contact near Hoboken, New Jersey, about 15 minutes after takeoff, FlightRadar24 data showed.
The helicopter’s flight records show it both taking off and landing from the Downtown Manhattan Heliport several times in the last few days. Such routes are common with sightseeing helicopter tours, but it was not immediately clear what the purpose of the flight on Thursday was.
The National Transportation Safety Board said it will investigate the crash and that it is still gathering information. The Federal Aviation Administration didn’t immediately comment.
“Due to a helicopter crash in the Hudson River, in the vicinity of the West Side Highway and Spring Street, expect emergency vehicles and traffic delays in the surrounding areas,” the NYPD said in a post on X.
There have been several helicopter crashes around Manhattan over the years. In March 2018, a helicopter hired for a photoshoot crashed into the East River, killing five people on board, though the pilot survived.
This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
