The plane slips from the runway to Lufker Airport; injured person

A small single-engined aircraft stopped on the Montauk Expressway, west of Locust Avenue, East Moriches, after skidding the runway at Lufker Airport shortly after Saturday noon.

"The Piper Warrior aircraft has passed and crossed the road," said Ron DeLalio, director of the airport at Lufker. "The pilot departed East Farmingdale's Republic Airport to do maintenance work at Lufker and could not have landed on a short grass field."

The pilot, Nedie Seidu, 30, of Manhattan, was not injured, according to Suffolk County police.

"The front wheel of the plane was bent," DeLalio said.

The authorities closed the Montauk road so that the plane could be removed. Seidu was flying a Piper PA-28-161 Warrior II when he attempted to land at 12:15, police said.

Police said the plane, whose wing and propeller had been damaged, struck a sign and stopped in front of 130 Montauk Hwy. The FAA was called to the scene.

The 1982 fixed-wing aircraft is registered with the Wiltton, Delaware-based 2BAPILOTNYC Corp. piloting company, which flies out of Republic. Seidu is an experienced professional pilot, according to the owner of 2BAPILOTNYC.

"Trying to land on 2,300 feet of grass can be a challenge," said DeLalio.

Daysi Calavia-Robertson is a business journalist covering the fields of agriculture, retail, travel and tourism, and specific interests. She covered lifestyle and entertainment, on camera.