Wed, Jun 11, 2025
PJS Case Alleges Discrimination, With Similar Aircraft Being Permitted at HPN
Elevate Aviation Group subsidiary Private Jet Services (PJS) recently filed a lawsuit against Westchester County and upper leadership at the Westchester County Airport (HPN) for alleged discrimination. The filing claims that the company’s jets were denied access to the airport while other, similar charter flights were welcomed with open arms.
PJS is a charter company that flies everyone from Fortune 500 executives to celebrities who apparently can't endure a commercial terminal. The dispute follows issues with access to Westchester County Airport (HPN) for Boeing 757-200 charter flights. The company claims that it was told “no,” while Delta Air Lines, flying what appear to be nearly identical aircraft for the New York Knicks and Rangers, somehow got a “yes.”
The complaint was filed in the Southern District of New York against Westchester County and April Gasparri, the Executive Director of Aviation at HPN. PJS alleges that, despite following all the usual safety procedures and being well within operational norms, airport officials implemented vague and unpublished rules that limited how many 757s could be on the ground. These rules, oddly enough, didn’t seem to apply when Delta was flying the local sports celebrities.
The lawsuit takes aim at what PJS calls “undocumented policies” and “ad hoc restrictions,” arguing that this approach not only lacks transparency, but also violates the principles that are supposed to govern publicly funded airports… namely, that everyone gets equal treatment regardless of their logo or VIPs.
Public flight records indicate that Delta’s 757-200s came and went from HPN on days when PJS’s equivalent aircraft were turned away. PJS is seeking declaratory and injunctive relief, ensuring them more ready access to HPN in the future. The case (25-cv-04820) is now part of the Southern District of New York’s docket, where a judge will presumably decide whether Westchester was upholding aviation best practices.
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