Mid-air helicopter crash kills 2 in New Jersey

Dec. 29 (UPI) — Two helicopters crashed in the air in New Jersey on Sunday, leaving both pilots dead.

The two “collided in mid-air” near the Hammonton Municipal Airport at 11:25 a.m. EST Sunday, the Federal Aviation Administration said. Hammonton is about 35 miles from Philadelphia.

Only the pilots were on board, the FAA said. The helicopters were an Enstrom F-28A and an Enstrom 280C. Both aircraft came down in a field about a mile and a half from the airport in Hammonton.

Witnesses said the helicopters were flying close together just before the crash.

The pilot of the 280C was Michael Greenberg, 71, of Sewell, N.J., and was pronounced dead at the scene, the Hammonton Police Department said.

The pilot of the F-28A was flown to Cooper University Hospital. He was Kenneth L. Kirsch, 65, of Carney’s Point, N.J. Kirsch died of his injuries at the hospital.

Hammonton Fire Department Chief Sean Macri told CNN earlier that when one of the victims was put into an ambulance, he was in “possible cardiac arrest.”

The Enstrom 280C lay charred on the ground. “It was hard to even tell it was a helicopter,” Macri said. It “looked like a pile of mangled metal that was on fire.”

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said his office is in contact with the NTSB and is asking for more information.

“Reports of this morning’s fatal helicopter crash over South Jersey are horrifying and tragic,” Booker said on X. “My heart is with those impacted and their families.”

Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said on X on Sunday, “I’m heartbroken to learn of the fatal helicopter crash that occurred in Hammonton, N.J., earlier this morning. I know our community will rally behind the family of the individual who lost their life as we navigate this terrible tragedy.”