A somber memorial service was held Wednesday for the five Italian tourists killed Saturday when a sightseeing helicopter and a private plane collided over the Hudson River.

Friends and family paid their respects at Campbell's Funeral Home on Madison Avenue. Mayor Michael Bloomberg was among those in attendance.

Following the ceremony, police cleared Madison Avenue as the bodies were transported to John F. Kennedy International Airport in five hearses. The bodies are being flown to Italy for burial.

The tourists were aboard a Liberty Tours helicopter when it was struck by a single-engine plane carrying a Pennsylvania pilot, his brother and his nephew. The two aircrafts broke up in the air, killing all nine aboard.

Earlier in the afternoon, divers were able to retrieve about 30 more pieces of the helicopter, ranging in size from one inch to one foot. Among the items recovered were gauges from the cockpit, a hinge, and a fire extinguisher.

A large section of helicopter wreckage was pulled out of the water on Sunday.

The small plane involved in a mid-air collision over the Hudson is now front and center in the investigation.

Crews used an Army Corps of Engineer crane to pull up the remains of the plane out of the river yesterday.

Police also recovered two bodies believed to be the pilot, Steven Altman, and his brother Daniel Altman.

All nine victims have now been recovered.