1 week Ago
The family of five on the ill-fated sightseeing helicopter that crashed into the Hudson River on Thursday had visiting New York City to celebrate the birthday of one of their three young children. Agustin Escobar, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal, and their three children — aged 4, 5, and 11 — were killed when the helicopter crashed into the Hudson River's dark waters. The pilot of the helicopter, who has not yet been identified, was also killed in the crash.
According to Spanish outlet El Diario, the family had just arrived in New York City from Barcelona to celebrate one of their children's birthdays and were on a job ride over NYC. Birthday Celebration Turns Fatal Shortly after arriving in New York City, the family chose to kick off their trip with a scenic helicopter tour over Manhattan, including views of the Statue of Liberty. Before the tragic flight, Escobar, Montal, and their children were seen smiling in front of the Bell 206L-4 LongRanger IV helicopter in heartbreaking images that now appear on the New York Helicopter Tours website.
Shortly after takeoff, the 36-year-old pilot radioed a warning that the helicopter was low on fuel. Just minutes later, disaster unfolded as the aircraft broke apart midair while flying over the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey around 3:15 p.m.
, according to FDNY officials. Escobar has since been identified as the Global CEO of Rail Infrastructure at Siemens Mobility. His wife, Merce Montal Costa, according to her LinkedIn profile, worked as a global commercialization manager at Siemens Energy.
She was also the granddaughter of Agustí Montal Costa, a former president of the FC Barcelona football club. Escobar brought with him 25 years of global experience, having led operations in various regions including the United States, South America, Spain, and Germany, according to his LinkedIn profile. He had been serving as the CEO of Siemens Spain since the end of 2022.
Big Loss Escobar had also been serving as the Global CEO of Rail Infrastructure at Siemens Mobility since October of last year, according to his profile. Witnesses said that the helicopter carrying Escobar and his family appeared to lose parts of the helicopter as it plunged into the water. "But you could literally see that the propeller just snapped right off.
You can see it snap off, and then it just came straight down," witness Charles McSorley said. The helicopter had been airborne for just 16 minutes after taking off from the Wall Street Heliport and flying near the Statue of Liberty before crashing into the water. Dani Horbiak told ABC News that she saw the helicopter "drop from the sky" while watching from her apartment.
"I heard five or six loud noises that sounded almost like gunshots in the sky and saw pieces fall off, then watched it fall into the river ," she said. The cause of the helicopter crash is still unclear, as rescue teams were seen retrieving twisted wreckage from the water late Thursday night. Michael Roth, CEO of New York Helicopter Charter and owner of the tour company, told the New York Post after the incident that he was "completely heartbroken.
" "The only thing I know by watching a video of the helicopter falling down, that the main rotor blades weren't on the helicopter. And I haven't seen anything like that in my 30 years being in business, in the helicopter business," he said..
