A 36-year-old former Navy technician who worked in a SEAL team has been identified as the pilot of a New York Helicopters Bell LongRanger that crashed in the Hudson River off Jersey City last Thursday. Seankese Johnson worked in security after leaving the SEALs until he could save enough money to fulfill his dream of flying for a living. “There were a lot of obstacles in front of him, but he climbed that mountain,” Remi Adeleke, a former SEAL who became friends with Johnson in the service, told NewsNation. “Not only did he climb that mountain, he died having achieved that goal. He died doing what he loved.” Also killed were Siemens executive Augustin Escobar, his wife Mercè Camprubí Montal and their three children ages four to ten. The flight was part of a birthday celebration for one of the kids.
Meanwhile, as of Saturday, the NTSB said it still hadn’t found the main rotor assembly and aft section of the tail boom but had already started going through the main cabin, which fell to the water after separating from the rotor. The board said there was no onboard video and none of the avionics recorded information they can use in their investigation. They’ve talked to officials with the company and some parts from the helicopter have been sent to labs in Washington.
