British Newlyweds Die in Greek Helicopter Crash
Alexander Cromie and Marie Ebert among three fatalities after private air taxi bursts into flames on Sifnos.
Image: Eddie Pollard / AI
Sarah Connor
British newlyweds Alexander Cromie and Marie Ebert were killed in a helicopter crash on the Greek island of Sifnos.
Alexander Cromie, a vice president at Blackstone, was among the deceased; the couple, reportedly in their early 30s, resided in London.
Local reports indicate the couple were on their honeymoon, having taken the helicopter from Markopoulo near Athens to Sifnos.
CCTV footage shows the aircraft spiraling out of control; it remains under review.
The crash occurred near houses and a monastery; Antonis Zambelis claims the helicopter impacted approximately 50 meters from residences and the Panayia tis Vrysis monastery.
Greece's Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport coordinates the inquiry, while the National Organisation for the Investigation of Air and Railway Accidents and Transport Safety has also launched an investigation.
Authorities suspect the aircraft suffered a mechanical failure; Greek police also suggest a mechanical fault may have caused the crash.
It experienced mechanical failure in the air – residents say it made a loud, strange noise, like military aircraft.
A well-placed source indicated the helicopter may have experienced engine failure; residents reportedly told Sifnos' deputy mayor they heard a loud noise just seconds before the helicopter crashed.
Sifnos' deputy mayor claimed almost "nothing left" of the aircraft, describing it as a shapeless mass.
Manolis Fountoulakis corroborated this, stating, "There was nothing left, a shapeless mass, inside which the two charred bodies must have been."
Sifnos' deputy mayor also claimed two victims were found in the wreckage, with the third a short distance away, though three bodies were recovered from the crash site on Monday afternoon.
This is a shocking event. We are shocked and are trying to manage, together with the right services, the consequences of this incident next to the helipad.
The Foreign Office is in contact with local authorities and provides consular support to the affected families.