THESE are the heartbreaking final pictures of the family boarding the doomed New York chopper that plunged into the Hudson River, killing everyone on board.
Agustin Escobar, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal, and their three children were identified as the victims of the horror crash on Thursday afternoon.
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The pilot, who still remains unidentified, also died in the tragedy, law enforcement sources confirmed.
The gut-wrenching photos, published on the New York Helicopter Tours website, show the bundled-up family smiling as they posed beside the doomed Bell 206L-4 LongRanger IV.
They were later seen strapped inside the aircraft, excited for what was meant to be a dream tour over Manhattan.
But tragedy struck around 3.15 pm, when the helicopter reportedly broke apart midair and dropped like a stone into the Hudson, killing four people on impact.
Two others were later pronounced dead at the hospital.
Terrifying videos show the chopper completely upside down and bubbling underneath the 50-degree water’s surface after the wreck.
The cause of the wreck hasn’t been confirmed, but eyewitness video showed the chopper shatter into pieces mid-air before it fell into the waters near the Holland Tunnel in New Jersey.
Footage taken from the shore showed the bottom of the helicopter partially sticking out of the water as New York Police Department boats cruised to the wreck.
The family had landed in New York just hours earlier, having flown in from Barcelona to kick off their vacation.
Escobar, a 25-year veteran of the international tech and mobility scene, had held top positions across the globe — including Spain, South America, and the U.S.
Most recently, he was appointed Global CEO of Rail Infrastructure at Siemens Mobility in October.
His wife, Merce Camprubi Montal, also had an impressive career.
She worked as a global commercialization manager at Siemens Energy in Barcelona for seven years, according to her LinkedIn profile.
The couple’s three children, all believed to be in middle school or younger, were also killed in the crash.
“He was such a great person — kind, steady, and always there when you needed him,” said Juan Ignacio Diaz, who used to work with Escobar.
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“He was a loyal friend, someone you could really count on.”
“No matter how hard things got, he always stayed calm and kept it together. He had this way of making things feel OK, even when they weren’t,” Diaz added.
“And he never forgot what mattered most — his family.”
“He was a loving, fun, and just really cool dad,” he said.
“I’m going to miss him and his family. I love you my friend.”
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EERIE WARNING
The tragic crash happened just one day after an anti-helicopter group raised the alarm on an increase in New York City air traffic.
Andrew Rosenthal, who is the president of Stop the Chop NY/NJ, compared the jump in helicopter flights to the Washington DC plane crash that claimed 64 lives.
“That was 100 percent foreseeable and preventable,” Rosenthal said, according to the Staten Island Advance.
“And we have the same exact, maybe worse, situation here in New York City.”
Rosenthal fears that helicopters are “sneaking under” approved elevations and is worried there could be a devastating wreck in the near future.
“The difference is when it happens here, it’s going to take out several blocks of residential homes,” he warned.
“It’s going to be much worse.”
At least 32 people have died in helicopter crashes in New York City since 1977.
The most recent crash was in 2019, when a helicopter used for executive travel hit the roof of a Manhattan skyscraper and the pilot died.
New York City area aircraft crashes
There were multiple serious air crashes in the New York City area before a helicopter carrying tourists crashed into the Hudson River near New Jersey on Thursday, claiming six lives.
May 2019: A helicopter crashed into the Hudson near 30th Street and the Lincoln Tunnel, but no one suffered serious injuries
March 2018: A charter helicopter offering “open door” flights crashed in the East River, killing five
2009: A small plane and a tourist helicopter collided over the Hudson River, killing nine people
2009: A commercial plane made an emergency landing in the Hudson River shortly after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport in New York City. Five people were seriously hurt
2006: New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle and his flight instructor were killed when their small plane crashed into a building on the Upper East Side
2004: A news helicopter crashed in Flatbush, Brooklyn, though no one was killed
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