After Nearly 3 Years, East Hampton’s Airport Now Correctly Labeled Public-Use

Feb. 26, 2025

A small but significant change in the Feb. 20 FAA aeronautical chart update marked welcome progress in efforts by NBAA and other stakeholders to preserve access to New York’s East Hampton Town Airport (JPX).

The Long Island facility is once again correctly depicted as a public-use airport on aeronautical charts and in databases, following the town of East Hampton’s filing of the required FAA Form 7480-1 to change the field’s designation in the agency’s records.

JPX has been misidentified as private-use on FAA charts since the town attempted to close the former East Hampton Airport in May 2022, and reopen the field as a private-use, prior permission required facility.

At that time, airport proponents, with NBAA support, successfully obtained a temporary restraining order (TRO) blocking that move, asserting that the town had failed to comply with requirements under New York state environmental law and the federal Airport Noise and Capacity Act of 1990. A subsequent permanent court injunction was upheld on appeal in March 2024.

However, the TRO and other court rulings came slightly after the field’s new name, identifier and the private-use designation hit the FAA charting cycle. JPX never closed and remained in operation as a public-use facility throughout this time, but the improper designation endured while the town stubbornly resisted submitting the required paperwork.

“Filing out a one-page form with the FAA may not seem like much, yet considering the effort it took behind the scenes and in court to get us here, this really is a major accomplishment championed by NBAA and other interested parties in protecting airport access,” said Alex Gertsen, CAM, NBAA senior director for airport advocacy and vertical infrastructure.

“The corrected charting of JPX as a public-use airport carries significant benefits and safety implications to operators throughout the region and sends a strong message to airport sponsors nationwide considering this page out of the East Hampton playbook in attempts to restrict their airport,” he added.

Reinstatement of the airport’s public-use designation restores JPX’s access to the NOTAM system and provides it with a more comprehensive entry in the FAA Chart Supplement, allowing publication of important safety information easily accessible by operators.

Unrelated to the charting update, operators preparing for the coming season should also note that the field’s air traffic control tower is scheduled to open a few weeks earlier than typical, starting May 1 and closing Sept. 7. The tower’s daily hours will be extended slightly, now opening one hour earlier at 7 a.m. still through 8 p.m.

“NBAA continues to remind all operators to fly neighborly by following the voluntary noise abatement procedures and helicopter routes and complying with the ‘Pilot Pledge’ initiative fostered by the East Hampton Community Alliance,” Gertsen added. “We welcome the town’s engagement with the FAA, and look forward to working with the town, other airport proponents and the surrounding communities to continue to preserve and improve this vital aviation facility.”