Glider pilot illegally arrested for flying over nuke plant

denverpilot

denverpilot

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Glider pilot illegally arrested for flying over a nuke plant NOT charted as restricted; offered hush deal to go free.

http://www.aopa.org/aircraft/articles/2013/130110secret-no-fly-zone.html

This just ****es me off to no end.

Arrested for "breaching the peace", and told by some DHS ass-hat that he should "remember 9/11"?

We really need to de-fund these morons. They're completely out of control.

A glider. 1000' above something not charted as restricted in any way.

And then, the blackmail of the legal system... We will let you go but only if you don't press charges against us.

What disgusting human beings, let alone, useful.
 
Wow.

Just... wow.

Remember, when you are in flight, you are the PIC.
 
Sounds to me like there is an over-eager person at the nuclear plant who thinks that any aircraft is a threat.
 
I hope he and/or AOPA has the means to sue the DHS, and whatever law enforcement agency illegally put him in jail. This East German/Stasi style menace has to be put in its place. To be able to do this with no fear of retribution continues to promote the current climate of the U.S., as one who tramples on individual rights in the name of total safety, and security.
 
I would have told them arrest me and give me a phone.

H.A.S.
 
People need to inforce their rights. I am sorry but we have rights. Do not bend over for these people.
H.A.S.
 
I watched that video this morning and was so mad over it. These people are completely out of control sometimes. Do they really wonder why some people have bad attitudes toward LEO's. I mean come on, you are so unprofessional that you make comments to the FBO that you need to shoot him down? I believe if some one would have said "Ok" go ahead, he would have pulled out his service weapon and just started shooting like its just a target.

At the end it said they dropped the charges after he agreed not to sue!! That would not have been my agreement. Just my 2 cents.
 
The sad part about this situation to me is that the result won't be in aviations favor. Instead we may well see restricted areas over all of these types of facilities. It's not like they apologized, they were just disappointed they didn't get to shot him down.
 
In a society that actually gave a **** we would be marching to the facility demanding these people be fired for many reasons and filing civil cases to hang them in court.. Instead we place nice while the world accepts more idiocracy. Did they seriously consider shooting the glider down and taking over the airstrip? oi vey..
 
Mayberry is still alive and well!:rofl: "........and one officer talked about commandeering the airport. “He was running around, the one guy that was commandeering everything, saying, ‘We were going to shoot him down,’” she said."
 

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Give someone a badge and a gun and step back.

While teaching my scuba diving class, I always start the first session with introductions, who are you?, why do you want to learn to dive?, what do you do for a living?, etc. One college student said he was in the Criminal Justice program and wanted to be a State Trooper "so I can go out and bust some heads." I told him that might not be the best reason to become a trooper, but he was insistant.

I was so concerned about his attitude that I wanted to write someone to make sure they take a real hard look at him should he ever apply, but was afraid they might take it as a letter of recommendation.
 
It is getting ridiculous. We are living in a police state with dwindling rights, freedoms, and priviliges in just about every facet of our lives. I guess most people are just happy with their social media, reality shows, and text messages. What have we become, Tommy?
 
Someone should arrange a fly-in there and have folks go loiter over the plant.
 
Anthony said:
It is getting ridiculous. We are living in a police state with dwindling rights, freedoms, and priviliges in just about every facet of our lives. I guess most people are just happy with their social media, reality shows, and text messages. What have we become, Tommy?
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the WHO?
 
How much damage can a glider do to a nuke plant? Scratch the bird poop off the paint?

remember 9/11
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It looks to me like he did remember 9-11. He didn't fly an airliner into a city.

That whole 9-11 thing was over a decade ago. Just a thought however maybe it's about time people start forgetting about 9-11-2001. Learn the lesson, write it in the history books and quit using it as an excuse for despicable behavior.
 
Unfortunately, this will not be the last incident of it's type. Just wait until new gun control laws are passed..... there's already been problems at JFK with passengers that have legally checked firearms.
 
He had not one but two lawyers. Makes me wonder WTF about the "settlement."

And it was a sheriff's officer who quipped the boneheaded remark about 9/11 not someone from DHS.
 
denverpilot said:
This just ****es me off to no end.

Arrested for "breaching the peace", and told by some DHS ass-hat that he should "remember 9/11"?

We really need to de-fund these morons. They're completely out of control.
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It disturbs me too. I've flown with Jayne and Frank. I've flown over both power plants mentioned... all before 9/11. I've landed at Hartsville.

As I read it, the Feds pretty much had it right. That includes the FAA and DHS though it doesn't seem they were directly involved until after the pilot had been detained. The "remember 9/11" line came out of the local police/sheriff's department.

Local police and deputies may get carried away a bit with their enforcement efforts. They have a lot of weapons (remember 9/11) and a lot of time. In SC, busting meth labs probably gets a bit boring and it's been a long time since they can stop black drivers for an afternoon's entertainment (there's a long history of this in this part of SC). But a call from a nuke plant security person is license to let the dogs out. Seems like everyone except "local law enforcement" kept their wits about them and would have handled the situation appropriately. But a gun waving deputy demands attention and it's generally best to submit... as this pilot did.

You want to sue the Darlington police in a SC court? Good luck.

That's not to denigrate the Darlington police or any other "local law enforcement". All it takes is one cowboy to start the s__t, but once it starts, the wagons circle and it's best to just back out. I'm really glad no one was hurt.

A tip: the most important document you can have when "local law enforcement" interacts with you and your plane is a drivers license. Not a pilots license or any of that FAA stuff but a driver's license. They know how to process that.
 
th
 
JeffDG said:
Someone should arrange a fly-in there and have folks go loiter over the plant.
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That's conspiracy. That will put you in jail.

A little education and training combined with a demo glider ride or 2 might be a bit more effective.
 
Bill Watson said:
That's conspiracy. That will put you in jail.

A little education and training combined with a demo glider ride or 2 might be a bit more effective.
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Yeah, but it IS fun to think about! Made me laugh!
 
Too late. Yeah we care because it was a pilot, but it was a motorcycle or a jetski or a kid with a model rocket last time and we didn't even blink. We deserve it. Oh well, when flying is outlawed only outlaws will fly.
 
Pretty silly how they said they were going to shoot him down.

And I know 9/11 was bad and all, but we need to move on. It'll take some time, too. However, based on how the Germans feel about the Holocaust, it may take some time to move on.
 
The only plant I've ever seen in the SC area that tells you to avoid flying less than 2000 msl is west of KBNL.
 
Bill Watson said:
That's conspiracy. That will put you in jail.

A little education and training combined with a demo glider ride or 2 might be a bit more effective.
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Conspiracy to what?

Conspiracy is only illegal when there's a conspiracy to commit some other crime. Conspiracy in and of itself is not at all illegal.
 
i've heard stories...they are good enough.
 
I wonder how long before this happens to someone flying a small eab or ultralight at 1000' over some small town's water tower and the local Barney bad### does just what happened here.

Or flying to close to a power plant from 1000'. Not just Nuk. but any power plant.
 
I guess IFR into ONZ is a bad idea...

(I assume the oval thing next to the nuclear plant is a place that people fly in circles?)

(I added the plant to the .pdf - it wasn't on the original.)
 

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IFR is OK because Barney Fife can't see you in the clouds
 
I have wondered if anyone would fire upon me as I fly along at 700-1000'. Scary stuff indeed
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
I guess IFR into ONZ is a bad idea...

(I assume the oval thing next to the nuclear plant is a place that people fly in circles?)

(I added the plant to the .pdf - it wasn't on the original.)
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So, do you need to file an eAPHIS before going missed?
 
i caught a thermal once near a powerplant in SE Iowa. It saved my flight from having to land in a field. Matt Michael was disappointed because he was standing in that field and wanted to be able to see me land out. I climbed as much as I needed and then beat it out of there before someone saw me. I was not aware of the SSA's letter at the time that determined thermalling was not loitering.

Thankfully the guy had a logger so he could prove that he wasn't nearly as close as they said he was. I bet they had really sad looks on their faces when presented with that evidence.
 
wsuffa said:
Unfortunately, this will not be the last incident of it's type. Just wait until new gun control laws are passed..... there's already been problems at JFK with passengers that have legally checked firearms.
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The problem is that New York City makes it a felony to posses a gun in NYC, which includes JFK.
 
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