British Newlyweds Killed: Honeymoon Ends in Tragedy
Alexander Cromie and Marie Ebert were on their honeymoon when the helicopter carrying them across the Greek island of Sifnos lost power and went down.
Alexander Cromie and Marie Ebert were on their honeymoon when the helicopter carrying them across the Greek island of Sifnos lost power and went down. Both were killed, along with their Greek pilot. Greek police told reporters they suspect a mechanical fault caused the aircraft to fail moments before impact, according to the BBC and The Guardian.
The couple had not yet been married a week. Greek authorities recovered the wreckage and opened a formal investigation. No distress signal was recorded before the crash, which investigators say is consistent with a sudden, catastrophic mechanical failure rather than pilot error.
Sifnos is a small Cycladic island popular with European tourists in the summer season. Charter helicopter services operate frequently between the islands during peak travel months, connecting visitors to destinations not easily reached by ferry. Greek aviation authorities have launched a full inquiry into the aircraft's maintenance records and flight history.
The British Foreign Office confirmed it is providing consular support to the families of both victims. Cromie and Ebert were British nationals. No further details about their ages or home city have been released by authorities.
Greek law requires mandatory post-incident inspections of all aircraft operated by the same charter company pending investigation findings. Whether the operator's broader fleet remains grounded while the inquiry proceeds has not been confirmed.
If you are travelling in Greece and using charter aviation services, your travel insurer's 24-hour emergency line is the first call to make — not the airline, not the embassy.