Pilot in fatal NYC helicopter crash was Navy seal pursuing his dream

A pilot leading a sightseeing helicopter tour of New York City for a family of five from Spain passed away alongside them after their aircraft crashed into the Hudson River on Thursday, April 10.

Pilot in New York City helicopter crash identified

Seankese Johnson, 36, who goes by Sean, has been identified as the pilot.

His death was confirmed by his wife, Kathryn Johnson.

About the NYC helicopter pilot

A native of Chicago, Johnson was a Navy veteran who got his commercial pilot’s license in 2023 in Utah. Johnson has flown around the country flying rescue missions during fires in California, sightseeing tours in Chicago, and as an instructor. He had recently started flying for New York Helicopter Charter.

He was also reportedly a celebrity bodyguard, his wife said.

Johnson told ABC 7 NY that although the two had been separated for months, he just moved to New York City and that her husband had always dreamed of flying.

“He’s the person you want in that pilot seat,” Johnson’s father, Louis Johnson, told The New York Times. “He was committed and he knew what he was doing. He was not new to this at all.”

Other victims

The family of victims in the crash were celebrating the upcoming 40th birthday of wife and mother, Merce Camprubi Montal, who was with her husband Agustin Escobar, 49, and their young children, who were 4, 8 and 10 years old.