Hudson Valley Man, 34, Survives Upstate Helicopter Crash That Killed Two

A 34-year-old Hudson Valley man was one of two survivors in a helicopter crash that killed two people in upstate New York late Tuesday afternoon.

Beekmantown is north of Plattsburgh, near the Canadian border.
Photo Credit: *Google Maps*

Joe Lombardi

10/31/2018 6:29 p.m.

Two utility workers were killed and two others hurt when the maintenance chopper got caught on power lines and crashed, catching fire in cornfields in Beekmantown, north of Plattsburgh, near the Canadian border.

Scott Fabia of Hyde Park in Dutchess County and 30-year-old Benjamin McAllister of Hopkinton survived, state police said.

The two men killed were the pilot, 56-year-old Robert Hoban Jr., of Shamang, New Jersey, and 30-year-old Jeremy Kearns of Massena, according to police. Autopsies have been scheduled for both men.

An investigation revealed the helicopter, a 1981 Aerospatiale, model AS355F2, owned by Catalyst Aviation LLC, was contracted by Northline Utilities for the New York Power Authority, to work on the power lines, state police said.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating.

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