The victims were identified as AgustĂn Escobar, a global CEO at Siemens Rail Infrastructure, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal, and their three children, aged 11, 5, and 4. The family had just arrived in New York to celebrate one of the children’s birthdays with a scenic helicopter ride. The aircraft, a Bell 206 owned by Meridian Helicopters and operated by New York Helicopter,
was part of a company that had offered tours for nearly 30 years. Siemens released a statement expressing deep sorrow over the loss, while Michael Roth, CEO of New York Helicopter, said the entire team was devastated. This crash marks another fatal incident in a long line of New York helicopter tragedies, with 32 deaths recorded since 1977.