WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congressman Rob Menendez (NJ-08) sent two letters urging the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and Department of Transportation (“DOT”) Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) to take immediate action to protect New Jersey residents from the impacts of helicopter noise and safety risks. He also urged the DOT OIG to investigate the Federal Aviation Administration’s (“FAA”) oversight of the helicopter tourism industry. The letters come six months after the tragic crash of an air tourism helicopter into the Hudson River on April 10, which claimed the lives of six people, and amid rising complaints from residents where as many as 140 helicopters pass overhead on a single day.
In a letter to the DOT’s Acting Inspector General Mitch Behm, Menendez, along with Representatives Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), Ed Case (HI-01), Dan Goldman (NY-10), Frank Pallone (NJ-06), Jill Tokuda (HI-02), and Nydia M. Velázquez (NY-07) requested an investigation into the FAA’s oversight of the helicopter tourism industry, following multiple fatal crashes and reports of companies exploiting loopholes to evade safety standards.
“We have continually raised our concerns directly with the FAA, including via letters sent on March 4 and May 8, 2025, and have been deeply disappointed with their response,” the lawmakers wrote. “While the FAA claims to prioritize safety, it has failed to hold helicopter tourism companies to adequate safety standards and protocols.”
In a second letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, Menendez made clear that the agency must use its environmental and public health authority to protect New Jerseyans from helicopter noise pollution. He cited the health, environmental, and quality-of-life toll that constant noise from helicopter flights takes on Hudson County families.
Menendez wrote: “Despite years of engagement from Members of Congress from New Jersey and New York, the advocacy of local leaders, and input from community residents, federal authorities have failed to take meaningful steps to address this crisis and protect the families that we represent from harmful, disruptive, constant helicopter travel. The Environmental Protection Agency must fulfill its responsibilities to address this critical quality of life issue.”
In May, Menendez and Members of Congress from New Jersey and New York introduced legislation banning all non-essential helicopter traffic in the area. Menendez also led two letters urging the DOT and FAA to examine the safety of the airspace and calling for the immediate grounding of all non-essential helicopter traffic in our region.
For full text of the DOT letter, click here.
For full text of the EPA letter, click here.
