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The estates of a couple who died in a 2018 plane crash while en route to East Hampton Airport filed an injunction Monday against the posh town to keep that very airport open.
The suit is the latest drama in a fight between the pro-airport fat cats of the East Hamptons and the town board, who want to close down the local airport and then reopen it under conditions that better suit board members’ desires.
The estates of the late builder-to-the-stars Ben Krupinski and his wife Bonnie — who were meant to land at the airport in question before their plane tragically crashed into the Atlantic in 2018, killing the couple and two others — is suing the town under Long Island Airline LLC (LIA).
LIA says closing the airport would breach the terms of a lease it has for airport space that doesn’t expire until 2027. The closure would inflict harm on the company that can not be compensated through monetary damages, its lawyer claim, according to court documents.
Krupinski built homes for everyone from Billy Joel to Mets owner Steve Cohen to Martha Stewart, with whom he also allegedly had an affair. He rented space at the East Hampton Airport to keep his planes.
“It’s like if you owned a condo and then someone decided you couldn’t use it anymore,” our airline industry source said describing LIA’s position. “You’d be pissed.”
LIA is asking the court to stop the airport from closing, which the town board insists will happen at the end of month — even though the FAA is “furious” over the plan.
The town’s board voted last month to close the decades-old East Hampton Airport on Feb. 28, and reopen on March 4, under private, town-controlled ownership. In the process, the town board can collect $10 million in surplus funds allocated to the “old” airport.
The FAA has privately called the scheme “reckless and ruthless” and wrote a point-by-point teardown of the plan in a letter reviewed by the Post.
LIA, its lawyers, and the executor of the Krupinski estates all did not return requests for comment on Wednesday. The Town Board declined to comment.
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