Tomás Pendas, 63, died when the helicopter he was piloting crashed into Biscayne Bay near Key Biscayne on Wednesday, Nov. 4, federal and local officials confirmed.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) held a news conference Thursday, Nov. 5, in Coral Gables, where air safety investigator Gene Rambo laid out the agency's next steps. Rambo said investigators plan to examine the helicopter's mechanical condition and the weather at the time of the crash, according to Local 10.

A preliminary report is expected within 15 days. A final report will take more than a year, Rambo said.

The Robinson R44 crashed at about 11:15 a.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It went down in the area of the Nixon Beach sandbar, between the southern ends of Key Biscayne and Coral Gables. The helicopter was registered to Pembroke Pines-based Global Aerials Inc., owned by Pendas, according to Local 10.

Pendas died at the scene.

The two passengers, Ryan McCoy, 52, and Ryan Ferraro, 27, were initially airlifted to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center in critical but stable condition, according to Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz. Both had been released from the hospital as of Nov. 5 with minor injuries, the Islander News reported.

"The helicopter apparently is a chartered helicopter and was in the process of filming boats on the water," Cordero-Stutz said.

Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office (MDSO) Marine Patrol units responded alongside Key Biscayne Police, Key Biscayne Fire Rescue and other agencies. When officers arrived, they found a boater already performing CPR on Pendas. Marine Patrol took over and brought him to the dock at No Name Harbor. City of Miami Fire Rescue crews continued life-saving efforts, but he was pronounced dead at the scene, Cordero-Stutz said.

"Unfortunately, even through all the life-saving efforts, the individual was pronounced deceased on the scene," Cordero-Stutz said at a Nov. 4 news conference, as reported by WSVN.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, already on the water, located McCoy and Ferraro and brought them to the same dock. Key Biscayne Fire Rescue transported them by ambulance to Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park, where a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue helicopter flew them to Ryder Trauma Center.

"We've been so focused today on trying to get the wreckage secured," Rambo said when asked about weather conditions at the Nov. 5 briefing. The NTSB has been in talks with several salvage companies about recovering the wreckage from the bay, he said.

The MDSO Homicide Bureau has taken over the death investigation. The NTSB is leading the overall crash probe, with the FAA also investigating. Rambo said investigators plan to be at the scene for two days, with the preliminary report due within 15 days.