August 8, 2009
Updated posts: Hudson plane vs helicopter mid-air collision
Updated
Approximately noon EST a tourist helicopter (Eurocopter AS350) and a single-engine Piper PA-32, which had just taken off from Teterboro Airport (Teaneck, NJ) en route to Ocean City, NJ, collided in mid-air over the Hudson River between Lower Manhattan and Hoboken.
At this point it’s felt both were traveling southbound and at impact the airplane wing sheared off…plane corkscrewed to the ground…helicopter rotors stripped off…helicopter went straight down…nothing remained floating.
Hope Flight 1549 Air Traffic controller Patrick Harten wasn’t on duty.
The helicopter belonged to Liberty Helicopter Sightseeing Tours, flying out of the West 30th Street heliport and is felt to have contained six souls – the airplane three.
Initial reports said there was one survivor. Not true.
Live coverage on CNN.
Press briefing approx 3:15 EST.
CNN live streaming video.
UPDATE 1 (8-8)
Mayor Bloomberg (a pilot) press conference:
Non-survivable accident.
No longer rescue – recovery mission.
Nine souls lost.
Plane: Pilot, adult and child passenger
Helicopter: Pilot, 5 Italian tourists
Recovered two bodies – one floating free, one submerged.
Bodies in wreckage – they think it’s the helicopter.
NYPD divers.
Visibility 2-3ft under the surface, depth 30 ft, strong current.
Not definitive – eyewitnesses: Airplane ran into the backside of the helicopter.
Though a pilot refueling on the deck at west 30th street heliport saw the plane overtaking the helicopter and attempted to radio the helicopter: “You have a fixed-wing behind you“, but doesn’t know if the transmission got through.
Hudson corridor not required to communicate – common frequency they can voluntarily use.
FAA and NTSB on site investigating.
UPDATE 2 (8-9)
Fifth Seventh body recovered from the Hudson.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recovered the helicopter wreckage – almost entirely intact.
Witness: right wing of plane clipped the helicopter rotor.
Corridor: VFR – visual flight rules – fly by sight.
UPDATE 3 (8-10)
Plane: owner and pilot, Steven Altman, 60, of Ambler, Pennsylvania; his brother, Daniel Altman, 49, of Dresher, Pennsylvania; and Daniel Altman’s 16-year-old son, Douglas.
Helicopter: pilot Jeremy Clarke, 32; Fabio Gallazzi, 49; his wife, Tiziana Pedroni, 44; and their son Giacomo Gallazzi, 15; Michele Norelli, 51, and his son, Filippo Norelli, 16.
Two pilots, three fathers, three teenage sons, one mother/wife
Silvia Ripamonte (wife and mother of Norellis) had decided to shop rather than go on the helicopter. It was to be a 12-minute tour.
They were in NYC to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary – reportedly a gift from Giacomo Norelli’s sister and were part of a group of 12 10 tourists from Bologna, Italy.
Jeremy Clarke had been working at Liberty for about 18 months and had 2700 helicopter flight hours.
Clarke not involved in any of the previous non fatal 8 accidents/1 incidence involving Liberty.
ATC lost contact with plane at 11:53 when it was at an altitude of about 1,100 feet.
The Piper did not and was not required to file a flight plan.
Neither aircraft required to have cockpit voice and flight data recorders.
Will be able to use radio communication from the corridor and the electronic navigational devices from the aircraft.
There has to be some surveillance video like last time as well.
Airplane wreckage felt to be located and attempts will be made to remove it today.
UPDATE 4 (8-10)
Plane wreckage found on its side, no wings visible, lodged in the bottom of the river, depth approx 60 ft.
8th body located within the fuselage, unable to be removed
9th body (adult plane occupant) still unaccounted for
Pilot of the piper, Steven Altman, 60, clean record, medical up-to-date, trained in instrument flying
Pilot’s license since 1998, unknown flight hours – kept in personal log as are maintenance records
Plane manufactured 1976, bought by Altman ” a decade” ago, clean record
“Steven Altman owned Altman Management Co., which oversaw more than 14,000 apartments in Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey, according to the company Web site. It was part of The Altman Group of real estate companies, begun by his father in 1949.”
Source: AP
UPDATE 5 (8-10)
NTSB: approx 225 unregulated aircraft/day fly within 3 mile radius of where mid-air collision occurred.
No aircraft flying the corridor are required to broadcast position/communicate by radio
Collision avoidance equipment and transponders that report altitude and ID not mandated
“Collision-avoidance system referenced by Nadler is “virtually standard” in new aircraft, helping to avoid collisions by showing pilots nearby aircraft on a screen.”
Planes not required to file flight plan (unbelievable)
Below 1100 ft, ATC unable to track, pilots navigate on their own
Dept of Transportation report (July) critical of FAA for not implementing safety improvements they recommended
Report: “Aircraft carrying 30 passengers or less have a fatal accident rate 50 times higher than commercial air carriers”
Hard to believe they didn’t look at this when they had the Congressional hearing and NTSB safety hearing re: Flight 1549.
Source: AP
UPDATE 6 (8-12)
Plane wreckage recovered from the Hudson – no wings
Last two bodies inside the fuselage belonged to the Altman brothers
Helicopter pilot, Jeremy Clarke, a New Zealander had been flying since 2004
Certified commercial helicopter pilot and flight instructor – 2700 flight hours
Been with Liberty since 2008 – 900 hours
Debate over tighter control of Hudson corridor airspace
Difficulty with crash avoidance technology is that all planes would need to be equipped in order to be seen
Functions via GPS and transponder
Screen with a moving map showing position and proximity of surrounding planes (if they have the technology)
Determines whether speed and altitude are increasing or decreasing
Newest system Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast: plane is under surveillance, responds automatically, broadcasting its location, as determined by on-board GPS and gives weather info
Used in Alaska – accidents down 48%
Cost $15,000
Source: NY Times
