Acting Chief Executive Chris Rocheleau said in a statement that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) took the lawsuit after learning that the company’s head of operations (which agreed to stop voluntary flights on Sunday).
A Spanish business executive, his wife and three children died along with the pilot when a helicopter operated by the New York Helicopter Tour broke down and fell into the Hudson River Thursday.
The family is taking a tourist flight in Manhattan, which the operator calls “the ultimate sightseeing tour of New York City.”
The head of operations of New York helicopters was fired shortly after agreeing to the agency’s request to close the flights, according to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) order.
New York helicopter CEO Michael Roth notified the FAA in an email that he did not authorize the cessation of operations and that those who agreed to do so would no longer work with the company. The FAA told Ross in the letter that it would cost $17,062 a day.
The Civil Aviation Administration has announced a review of the licenses and safety records of helicopter travel agencies.
The National Transportation Safety Commission is investigating the crash.
Job theories include drone collisions, bird strikes or mechanical failures, Jersey City officials said.
Video of the incident has appeared, showing that the body is obviously disconnected from the rotor.
The crash brought U.S. aviation safety to its death after a series of deadly crashes, including a collision between military helicopters and a Washington passenger plane in January, claiming 67 lives.
A light plane also crashed after leaving at Boca Raton Airport in Florida on Friday, with local media reporting three people killed after the plane fired up mechanical problems.
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