Phil Wong asks about ferry-seaplane communication

Councilmember Wong, followed by Brooks Powers.

Thank you, Chair.

First question is regarding the seaplane taking off and landings.

I had a friend that was stuck in Newark Airport.

when the bakery truck, when the plane trying to land and struck a lamppost, and then the bakery truck, and then the airport was closed.

My question is, do your ferries communicate with seaplanes whenever they take off and land, or there is no communication and they play by ear?

Can you please answer that?

Our ferry captains are on a public channel that seaplanes are able to access as well.

But do they listen to?

Yeah, they typically radio in before landing.

So they're coordinated both with the activity on the water as well as with Tower LaGuardia on the airspace side.

Yeah, because based upon the photos here, you know, then they can get crowded pretty easily during the summer months.

And if there's no adequate communication, potentially these are accidents waiting to happen.

So communication is certainly one part of that.

Ensuring safe landings on the waterfront.

There's also pilot discretion to find navigable water so they can do a turnaround if there isn't a patch of water to land safely.