Seaplane Makes Hard Landing in New York City’s East River

A seaplane carrying multiple passengers experienced a hard landing in New York City’s East River. The incident occurred on Sunday, at around noon local time, according to officials.

The New York Fire Department (FDNY) responded swiftly to reports of a plane in the water. Around 12:01 p.m. the plane was spotted near the marina at East 23rd Street and the FDR Drive in Manhattan.

FDNY units successfully removed at least eight passengers from the seaplane. Two passengers were evaluated for minor injuries, although one refused medical attention, as stated by the NYPD.

The seaplane had departed from the Hamptons and was later observed upright. FDNY officials reported that it was being towed back to the dock.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the incident involved a Kodiak 100 seaplane whose pilot managed to make a hard landing in the East River near Brooklyn. This resulted in the snapping of a wing strut, which is a vital pole connecting the airplane’s wing to its body.

The FAA plans to initiate an investigation and expects to release a preliminary accident report soon. Notably, another seaplane encountered a crash into the East River three weeks ago.

On June 13, a separate incident involved the FDNY rescuing a pilot and one passenger from a plane that went down near Whitestone, Queens. Fortunately, there were no injuries in that incident.