Since 1977, around 38 people have died in helicopter crashes in New York City; six were killed on Thursday as their aircraft went down in the Hudson River.
Six people—including a family of tourists from Spain and the pilot—were killed on Thursday when a helicopter crashed in New York City’s Hudson River, renewing copter safety concerns.
Helicopter incidents often receive high-profile coverage due to the scope, and sometimes the personalities involved. Due to the often more luxurious nature of private helicopter travel, individuals who die in the crashes will draw attention.
Los Angeles Lakers legend and NBA Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant was killed in a January 2020 helicopter crash (which also took the life of his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people).
Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, a Thai billionaire and owner of English soccer team Leicester City, also died in a copter crash in 2018.
In the 1978 film Superman: The Movie, Superman heroically saves Lois Lane when high winds rip a cable from the rooftop landing pad and cause a helicopter to careen off the side of the building. When he saves her, he says: „I hope this hasn’t put you off of flying. Statistically speaking, it’s still the safest way to travel.“
But what do the numbers say about helicopters, and just how dangerous is it to travel in them?
The Associated Press reported that at least 38 people have died in helicopter incidents in New York City since 1977, when a rotor broke loose while one was trying to land on the Pan Am Building (now called the MetLife Building), killing five people including one on the street some two blocks away.
