Federal crash investigators said they will examine the role of hard-to-remove harnesses that may have trapped five passengers in a helicopter that ditched in the East River in New York on Sunday.
The harnesses, which are different than traditional aircraft seat belts, are designed to allow people to safely take photographs from a helicopter with the doors open. They attach from the rear and could be difficult to remove in an emergency, according to a passenger on another flight who said he photographed the helicopter before the crash.
“We have heard information that’s come forward from a number individuals regarding the harness system in this particular helicopter and then also in sister helicopters,” the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigator-in-charge Todd Gunther said at a briefing Monday. “That’s something we’ll be looking into.”
(c) 2018, Bloomberg · Alan Levin
{Matzav.com}
