NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. (October 11, 2025) — Members of the Counter-Terrorism Zone 3 marine subcommittee (Westchester, Rye, Mamaroneck, New Rochelle( conducted an annual review of real-world events to identify training needs and ensure Westchester County’s ability to respond to similar incidents.
This year’s training exercise took place in the Long Island Sound near Huckleberry Island in New Rochelle and was based on an April 10, 2025, helicopter crash in the Hudson River in New York City; a Bell 206 LongRanger IV helicopter crashed into the Hudson River near the Newport neighborhood of Jersey City, New Jersey, killing all six people on board. The victims included five passengers—a family from Barcelona, Spain—and the 36-year-old pilot, Seankese Johnson, a Navy veteran.
The exercise had two significant goals: to ensure that the Westchester County Police Department and its marine partners could respond effectively to such an incident, and to secure the aircraft in a manner that would not impede the National Transportation Safety Board and its follow-up investigation.
The WCPD Aviation Unit reviewed the notifications needed for incidents involving either a civilian or military aircraft and provided an overview of the structural integrity of a helicopter. After the Aviation Unit’s presentation and some discussion, exercise participants reviewed best practices and options for securing a helicopter in the Sound or Hudson River.
The Aviation Unit then simulated a downed aircraft in the area of Huckleberry Island, and the various marine units took turns approaching and securing the aircraft.
Both the Hudson River and the Long Island Sound have FAA-designated helicopter routes overhead, which make this training vital and applicable to all partner marine units in Counter-Terrorism Zone 3.
The following agencies participated in the training: City of Rye Police Department Marine Unit, Village of Mamaroneck PD Bay Constables, City of New Rochelle Police Department Harbor Unit, City of New Rochelle Harbormaster, WCPD Aviation Unit and WCPD Marine Unit.
This article was drafted with the aid of Grok, an AI tool by xAI, under the direction and editing of Robert Cox to ensure accuracy and adherence to journalistic standards.
