Snowstorm grounds Cuomo's plane on LI

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo is grounded.

After a press event on Long Island Thursday morning, Cuomo went to his plane for the return trip to Albany to continue monitoring the state’s response to a nasty snowstorm. But Cuomo spokeswoman Melissa DeRosa told Newsday that the plane’s left engine failed to re-start after numerous attempts over a half hour, forcing the grounding under federal rules.

So Cuomo is eyeing the storm from ground level in a long road trip back to Albany.

This is the same plane that was redirected back to Albany when it was headed to pick up Cuomo in Farmingdale on Dec. 10 after a brief problem with the landing gear. The plane is a 25-year-old Beechcraft BE-200.

Cuomo, a Democrat, was on the Island early Thursday to attend the swearing-in of Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano, a Republican, at Bethpage High School.

[UPDATE, 1:41 p.m.] The governor’s plane is headed back to Albany, but without the governor.

After Cuomo hit the road for Albany, and after a waiting period required by federal rules, the engine re-started, aides said. Cuomo’s staff says there’s no definitive reason the engine didn’t start when the governor needed it.

Mechanics will inspect the aircraft's engine when it lands in Albany.