A seaplane pilot and his passenger had to be rescued from the East River Saturday in Queens after their craft briefly took off — but then crashed after it was struck by a wave which cracked the windshield, the pilot and authorities said.

The aircraft was near Riverside Drive and 158th St. in Whitestone, near the Throggs Neck Bridge, when the incident happened around 9:20 a.m., an FDNY spokesman said.

A private boater who was nearby rescued the two people, who were not seriously hurt, from the plane, officials said.

Giuseppe Oppedisano walking while smiling, wearing a light blue shirt with "EPIC AIRCRAFT" logo, dark blue jeans, and a pendant.
Giuseppe Oppedisano, 67, told The Post a wave clipped his wing before the crash Saturday.Brigitte Stelzer for NY Post
“I was taking off and I hit a big wave and the windshield cracked open … and it took on water,” pilot Giuseppe Oppedisano, who had a white bandage wrapped around his elbow, told The Post. “That’s it. Everything is fine.”

Oppedisano, 67, owns the popular Il Bacco restaurant in Little Neck, Queens, and is the same pilot who was at the controls in October 2020 during a fatal crash that killed a woman and left three others hurt.

During that crash six years ago, witnesses said the plane was traveling fast along the water when it hit a pier, cracking the plane in two, according to officials.

A National Transportation Safety Board investigation listed poor pilot judgment as the cause of the tragedy.

Oppedisano was left in critical condition after that crash and had to undergo 10 surgeries.

Giuseppe Oppedisano and another passenger towing his crashed two-passenger aircraft up to his property.
The restaurant owner was involved in a fatal crash in 2020.Brigitte Stelzer for NY Post
He lives near the spot where his plane crashed and keeps the craft in a hangar behind his Riverside Drive mansion, officials previously said.

His airplane was towed back to shore and then taken to his home.

Oppedisano later said he was on his way to have lunch with a friend on Block Island when the incident happened.

“The window is broken so I just got out,” he recalled later at his home. “I have a life jacket on and I called 911 and they came right away.”

Giuseppe Oppedisano with a bandaged arm, after being rescued from a plane crash, standing next to a police officer and another man by the East River.
A National Transportation Safety Board investigation listed poor pilot judgment as the cause of the 2020 fatal crash.Brigitte Stelzer for NY Post
He suffered “a little scratch on my arm” from the broken glass, he said.

“Of course, I’m still going to be flying,” he said.

“This was a freak accident,” he said. “The last one was a freak accident, too, because as I am landing in the water a boat jumped in front of me.”

He explained the Cessna he was flying when the fatal crash happened was heavier and would have blown up if he hit the boat.

His seaplane was towed from the site but he’s planning to purchase a new one.

“I’ve got to get another plane,” he said. “That one is gone. There’s a lot of damage.”

Additional reporting Trista Panagakos and Brigitte Stelzer