Boaters suspect Jones Beach air show's colored smoke damaged their watercraft

As he does every year, Joel Fromkin parked his 32-foot Crownline power boat in Zach's Bay to witness the FourLeaf Air Show at Jones Beach.

After enjoying the dizzying aeronautic acrobatics of fighter jets and parachute teams from around the world on Sunday morning, the North Bellmore boater noticed red specks on his vessel's deck and seats.

Fromkin and another boater who reported the same issue said they believe the stains came from the colorful plumes of smoke that trailed some of the aircraft taking part in the show.

"One of the planes used this raspberry-colored smoke, which was exactly the color of the stains on my boat,” Fromkin said Thursday in a phone interview. Removing the stains proved impossible, he added.

“It won’t come off," said Fromkin, who estimated the damage at $10,000 to $13,000. "I tried Magic Eraser and I just cannot get it off.”

Aircraft from the United States, Britain, Canada and the United Arab Emirates took part in this year's air show, which attracted 268,000 people, the second-highest attendance in the event's history, according to organizers. This year's show was the first including flight crews from other countries, organizers said.

In a statement, the state Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, the event's organizer, said it was "aware of reports that a red dye or oil potentially impacted boats during the FourLeaf Air Show at Jones Beach," adding it was "actively investigating the situation."

Jackie Savage, spokesperson for FourLeaf Federal Credit Union, the show's primary sponsor, said in an email the company was "in the process of reaching out to" Fromkin to discuss the problem.

The colored smoke used in air shows typically is made using a mixture of paraffinic oil and dyes that are pumped into the exhaust of a jet, according to multiple online sources.

The Jones Beach air show included performances by the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, the Army's Golden Knights parachute team, the Canadian Forces Snowbirds, the Royal Air Force Red Arrows and the UAE's national aerobatic team. Not all teams used exhaust plumes as part of their performances.

Few problems were reported, though a Canadian Snowbirds jet collided with a bird, organizers said. 

Fromkin and another boater, Doug Malvino, of Islip, said they spotted red stains across the topsides of their boats following the show.

Both men expressed concern the stains may have been caused by a toxic substance.

Malvino said he parked his 36-foot Yellowfin in the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday to watch the air show. Smoke, apparently from jet exhaust, was “just lingering in the air," he said.

"About an hour after [the] show, I started noticing a couple of spots,” he said. “It was all over our clothes, it was all over the boat.”

Efforts to clean it were futile, he said.

“It’s pretty much a permanent stain,” said Malvino, estimating he sustained $30,000 to $50,000 in damage to his boat.

Some flight crews were based at Long Island MacArthur Airport in Ronkonkoma and Republic Airport in East Farmingdale.

Caroline Smith, spokesperson for Islip Town, which owns MacArthur, said airport staff "did not oversee the air show operations or handle the materials" used in the show.

Stephen Canzoneri, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation, which owns Republic, said the agency provided only logistical support for the show.