Washington —
A sightseeing helicopter that plunged into the Hudson River near New York City last year, killing a family of five and the pilot, crashed after hitting a flock of geese, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a series of investigative reports released on Thursday.
The Bell 206L-4, operated by New York Helicopters, took off from lower Manhattan on April 11, 2025, circling the Statue of Liberty, before flying north along the Hudson River. After turning back south, the aircraft was near the New Jersey shoreline when it broke apart in the air, flipping and spiraling into the water.
A “mixed-species flock of Brant and Canada Geese impacted the rotor blades” and the rear of the aircraft, the Smithsonian Institution’s feather identification lab determined. A “Great Blackbacked Gull was hit by flying debris from the tail section at force enough to mangle the bird and cause the bird wing to separate and come to rest on the rooftop with other helicopter debris,” the lab found.
The Smithsonian, primarily known for its public museums in Washington, also assists investigators by identifying bird remains, called snarge, after aircraft collisions.
