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Investigators continue searching the Hudson River for other remains and wreckage from Saturday's tragic collision between a small plane and sightseeing helicopter over the Hudson River. So far, seven bodies have been found, as well as helicopter wreckage. Authorities are hoping to pull the plane's wreckage from the water, but they say that finding the two remaining bodies is their first priority.
The papers have various portraits of the victims: On the helicopter were five Italian tourists—Michele Norelli, 51 and his son Filippo Norelli, 16, and their friends Fabio Gallazzi, 49, and Tiziana Pedrone, 44, and their son, Giacomo Gallazzi, 15 —on vacation and a veteran helicopter pilot, Jeremy Clarke, originally from New Zealand, who was planning his wedding. On the plane was Pennsylvania businessman Steven Atlman, 60, who was flying the plane—he was an experienced pilot who also "flew missions for Angel Flight East, which provides free air transportation for medical patients and their families"—his brother Daniel, 49, and Daniel's son, Douglas, 16.
Italian tourist Silvia Rigamonti, whose husband Michele Norelli and son Filippo Norelli, died in the crash, was originally to have taken the fatal helicopter flight as well, but got cold feet. She had to tell her 23-year-old son Davide Norelli that his father and brother died; Norelli was planning on visiting NYC in a few weeks, but the NY Times reports that he said, "I won’t ever set foot in New York in my entire life," and wondered, "Is it normal that after Sept. 11, you Americans still allow planes to fly so low? That’s what I want to ask the American public."
The flight corridor over the Hudson River requires pilots to operate under visual flight rules—pilots tells each other their locations over radio—but the crash has raised questions about the safety. National Transportation Safety Board chairwoman Deborah Hersman said, "We are looking at everything. We know it's congested."
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"Is it normal that after Sept. 11, you Americans still allow planes to fly so low? That’s what I want to ask the American public."
Wow. I wonder the same thing.
It's because they don't usually hit each other or stuff around them. Rules on where planes fly wouldn't have changed 9/11 in any way.
Even private planes are far safer than cars. This was an obviously rare event that doesn't exactly speak of something broken with air safety rules.
From what I was reading in the papers yesterday, it said something like once a plane flies below 1100 feet, its allowed to take whatever path it wants as long as the pilot alerts everyone in the area.
I don't know about you, but that is the stupidest thing I have ever read. We have had 2 plans crash into buildings uptown within the last 2 or 3 years...why are these small aircrafts allowed near our buildings?
It may be the stupidest thing you ever heard, but it's also not actually true.
I don't really give a shit about the congested airspace around NYC or any of the sketchiness involved with that. Everything is crowded here. Everyone wants to be here, including rich assholes with their own planes and fool tourists on helicopters. Sometimes bad things happen, including crashes. Just think of it this way - it could have been a hell of a lot worse if they'd crashed over the city.
However, if they shut down the airspace over the city, maybe I won't have the godforsaken news helicopters waking me up in the morning. GO AIRSPACE BAN!!!
Deborah Hersman is so hot.
Poorly designed roads kill thousands of people every year and no one says a word, but a few people die in a one-in-a-billion plane crash and everyone freaks out.
Because dying in a car crash has long been an American way-of-death. It hardly makes the news unless there's unusual circumstances.
Once aviation deaths become more routine, you won't be hearing about it as much.
It's simply too crowded up there.
Michele Norelli was Silvia's husband, not father. Otherwise, from what you have written, Silvia would be both mother & sister to her sons.
Terrible tragedy any way you look at it.
It will be very telling if they autopsy the guy who flew the private plane to see if he'd had a heart attack or other health event. I imagine something happened to him that made him lower his altitude and swerve into the helicopter. So tragic for the others.
"I imagine something happened to him that made him lower his altitude and swerve into the helicopter."
My wild speculation: he just didn't see it. He'd just exited Teterboro ground and just passed into visual flight rules. The helicopter had just taken off, popping up from the heliport ascending over the river. The plane banked and turned as the copter came into its path; if the pilot did see it it was too late to change course. Already in a turn in a single engine prop plane and at low altitude, there aren't many maneuverability options.
The plane approached the helicopter from behind so that pilot -- who could have maneuvered more easily -- never saw the plane... though reports are that another pilot radioed him right before the crash to warn him that a fixed wing plane was behind him.