Watch CBS News

New Jersey Residents, Officials Call For Ban On Tourist Helicopters

HOBOKEN, N.J. (CBSNewYork) - A number of residents and officials in New Jersey are tired of the noise from low-flying tourist helicopters on their side of the Hudson River and are now calling for them to be banned.

During a 15-minute news conference held Monday at Pier A Park in Hoboken at least half a dozen buzzed overhead, WCBS 880's Jim Smith reported.

Resident Brian Wagner said they usually start flying over at 9 or 10 in the morning and keep going until about 11 p.m. every day.

New Jersey Residents, Officials Call For Ban On Tourist Helicopters

"We have [an] ongoing assembly line of tourist helicopters," he said, adding that sometimes they make it difficult to have a conversation.

Elected officials from up and down the Hudson have now banded together to call for action.

"I am meeting with the FAA and I am meeting with the people in Washington to try to ban these flights over this congested area," U.S. Rep. Albio Sires of West New York said.

"It sounds like a war zone," said Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer.

They said last weekend's emergency landing near the 79th Street Boat Basin in Manhattan should serve as a wakeup call that this is also a safety issue.

You May Also Be Interested In These Stories

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.