NEW YORK CITY— A single engine Piper Saratoga collided with a tour helicopter over the Hudson River while en-route to the Ocean City Municipal Airport, according to authorities.
Five Italian tourists and One Pilot are were onboard the Eurocopter AS 350 owned by Liberty Tours, a sightseeing and charter company, according to authorities.
Two adults and one child were aboard the Saratoga and their body’s have been recovered. The victims in the single-engine plane have been identified as: Steven Altman, 60, the pilot and owner of the plane; his brother, Daniel; 49 and nephew Douglas, 15, according to authorities.
The Altmans owned a cluster of successful construction and real-estate management businesses. The companies manage and own thousands of apartments in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware, the New York Daily News reports.
The helicopter wreckage was found in about 30 feet of water, while the plane is believed to be near the midchannel point of the Hudson in deeper water. A side-scanning sonar is being used to pinpoint the plane and has identified a possible third debris field. The search is scheduled to resume Sunday morning, Debbie Hersman, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board said at a riverside news conference late Saturday. Underwater visibility of about two feet hampered Saturday’s search effort, she said.
A helicopter pilot refueling on the ground at the heliport for Liberty Tours, which operated the helicopter involved, saw the plane approaching the helicopter and tried to radio an alert to the pilots, Hersman said. “He radioed the accident helicopter and told him, ‘One-lima-hotel, you have a fixed wing behind you’,– there was no response.”
All nine people in both aircrafts are thought to have been killed in the collision, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in an afternoon news conference. “There was an accident which we do not believe was survivable,” said Bloomberg, noting that the search for survivors had become a recovery mission.
Governor Jon S. Corzine issued the following statement regarding the mid-air collision over the Hudson River:
(Photo by: Tim Larson)
“This is a devastating tragedy that occurred today over the Hudson
River,” Governor Corzine said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the
family and friends of those involved in this terrible accident. We are
working jointly with the Hoboken Police, New Jersey State Police, the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the New York City Police
Department in the recovery efforts of this horrible crash.
“All of us in this region also need to take a long and serious look at
the circumstances surrounding this crash to ensure that significant air
traffic over the Hudson doesn’t come at the risk of the safety of New
Jersey families who live along the riverfront.”
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