Spanish Family Killed in Hudson River Crash Were Celebrating Child's Birthday When the Helicopter Fell From the Sky

Mercè Camprubí Montal, right, and Agustín Escobar with their children in the helicopter before taking off for a sightseeing flight around New York City

A Spanish family of five was tragically killed in a helicopter crash during a sightseeing tour over New York City on Thursday afternoon. The flight had been arranged to celebrate one of the children’s birthdays and ended in disaster when the aircraft plunged into the Hudson River near Jersey City.

The victims were Mercè Camprubí Montal, her husband Agustín Escobar, and their three children, aged between four and eleven. The 36-year-old pilot of the helicopter was also killed. The aircraft crashed upside down into the freezing waters at approximately 3:15 p.m. local time.

The family, visiting from Barcelona, had hired the tour to see landmarks including the Statue of Liberty. Moments before the crash, photographs taken onboard showed the family smiling, with one child seated next to the pilot.

Mercè Camprubí Montal and Agustín Escobar were celebrating one of their children’s birthdays with the helicopter trip

Camprubí Montal belonged to a prominent Catalan family known for its historic involvement with FC Barcelona. She was the granddaughter of Agustí Montal Costa, who served as president of the football club from 1969 to 1977, during which Johan Cruyff joined the team and helped lay the foundation for Barcelona's future dominance in European football. Her great-grandfather, Agustí Montal Galobart, was also a past president of the club. Her brother, Joan Camprubí Montal, was a candidate in 2024 to preside over the team before withdrawing from the race.

She worked as the global commercialization manager for Siemens Energy and had been with the company for nine years.

Her husband, Agustín Escobar, was originally from Puertollano in Castilla-La Mancha and had worked at Siemens Spain for more than two decades. He led multiple projects in Latin America, served as the chief executive officer of Siemens Spain between 2022 and 2024, and since November had been the global executive director of rail infrastructure based in Berlin. Escobar had stopped in London to check on Siemens’s UK operations before heading to the United States.

Miguel Ángel Ruiz, mayor of Puertollano, paid tribute to Escobar in a statement, calling him “an outstanding professional in the field of engineering and business management.” He added, “The city deeply regrets the departure of one of its most brilliant and committed sons.”

Investigations into the cause of the crash are underway. Witnesses reported seeing the helicopter "split in half" before crashing and described its flight path as “erratic.” Footage of the incident corroborated those reports. Four of the six victims were pronounced dead at the scene, while the remaining two died in hospital.

Agustí Montal Costa, who died in 2017, was the president of FC Barcelona from 1969 - 1977

New York City Mayor Eric Adams confirmed that all six individuals onboard had been recovered from the water and expressed condolences to their families.

The helicopter was operated by New York Helicopter Charter, a company with a documented history of mechanical issues. In 2013, one of its helicopters was forced to make an emergency landing on the Hudson River, and another crashed in 2015 after takeoff in northern New Jersey.

The accident has reignited concerns about helicopter safety in New York, where the skies are frequently busy with commercial and sightseeing flights. Since 1977, at least 32 people have died in helicopter crashes in the city.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who was on an official visit to China, described the crash as an “unimaginable tragedy” and extended condolences to the family and their loved ones. United States President Donald Trump also offered his sympathies, stating, “God bless the families and friends of the victims.”