Aircraft theft?

FloridaPilot said:
This is actually a good idea. I wish they would create a sensor that will notify you when your airplane door is open. They already have it with Home alarm systems.
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My son in law runs a security company, and they have remote wireless systems.
 
This whole thread reminds me of when I got my wrangler, the guy told me to never lock the doors, said scumb bags are too dumb to unzip a side window to get it, so they'll just cut your $1,000+ dollar top and then you'll be out whatever they steal AND a top.
 
James331 said:
This whole thread reminds me of when I got my wrangler, the guy told me to never lock the doors, said scumb bags are too dumb to unzip a side window to get it, so they'll just cut your $1,000+ dollar top and then you'll be out whatever they steal AND a top.
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I've owned a couple of rag tops, never lock them for this reason. Just don't leave stuff inside
 
Rental car companies in Hawaii tell you up front to leave your rental car unlocked (and nothing valuable in it). They will not cover broken windows from folks breaking into cars it is so common.

John
 
Cykoguy said:
This. Ever call in something suspicious and wait to see how long it takes them to come out? We had an active attempted break in last year and they didn't get there until 25 minutes later. I rarely even bother calling about anything anymore because I know 99% of the time it is a waste of both of our time since it will be over or gone by the time they get there.
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An active residential burglary and it took them 25 minutes to get there? That's pretty bad. But some agencies/municipalities don't allow an emergency response for property crimes. Complain to the city. They're the ones whose risk management weenies make arbitrary decisions that hamper response times.
 
James331 said:
This whole thread reminds me of when I got my wrangler, the guy told me to never lock the doors, said scumb bags are too dumb to unzip a side window to get it, so they'll just cut your $1,000+ dollar top and then you'll be out whatever they steal AND a top.
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Unfortunately, some of them aren't smart enough to try the door first either...
 
EminiTrader said:
Lock the doors and put up those window shades that cover up all the windows and try to stay in a well-lit area of the ramp.
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Covering the windows is a good idea. I had a friend who worked for the local Sheriff's department and he would give classes to neighborhoods about how to protect yourself. A typical criminal wants to get in and out as quickly as possible. They will smash your window, but only if they have to and usually if they know there's something good inside. If they can't see what's in there, they won't risk making a lot of noise for no gain. They check for open doors and anything they can see from the window.

We've had quite a few Bose headsets stolen at our airport over the last few years. The police said anything that says Bose on it is expensive, so even a thief that doesn't know anything about aviation knows there's value when they see them. The frustrating part was, when a handheld radio belonging to the City was stolen, they put a camera in the terminal... how much more would it cost to put up another one or two outside? I just put up 4 wireless cameras at my house for less than $400.
 
jsstevens said:
Rental car companies in Hawaii tell you up front to leave your rental car unlocked (and nothing valuable in it). They will not cover broken windows from folks breaking into cars it is so common
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You should a) NEVER leave things in your car and b) ALWAYS lock the doors. I've heard "I don't care, it's a rental" many times. I reply, "I don't care about the car, I care about me." Last thing I want to do is get into a car with a bad actor in the back waiting.

And for safety, never park, put your computer in the trunk, and walk away. People watching know where your good stuff is. That's why I put such things in the trunk at home or leaving the office. Unlikely you'll be followed and if you stop somewhere they will not have seen you messing with the trunk.

For the plane left on the ramp, put on a full cover with a cable lock. Every second counts to the thief. They don't want to have to cut the cover to see what might be inside. The "smarter" ones know if you're bothering with that lock and cover all the time, you've probably locked the door too. That's more time it will take to get your ADF. (edit: unless you like AM radio, you might want to encourage theft of your ADF)

I'm curious about the prop locks. Used one at KBED because that's how they do things there. Not sure if MASSPORT requires it or what, but that airport is the most security conscience GA airport I've ever seen. Does anyone use prop locks regularly?
 
GRG55 said:
I don't live in anything that could be called a high crime area or region, but when it comes to car theft, house & garage break-ins, or most forms of vandalism of private property the police here will help you file a report, compare it to their stats to see if they are dealing with an emerging or known trend, and that's about it. It has become too common for them to be able to deal with the petty cases; they look for patterns to identify the organised rings and that is about all they have manpower for.
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Maybe if they spent less "manpower" parked in the median looking for expired inspection stickers they'd have the "manpower" to investigate real crimes.
 
paflyer said:
Maybe if they spent less "manpower" parked in the median looking for expired inspection stickers they'd have the "manpower" to investigate real crimes.
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But that generates revenue for city coffers, and that type of behavior is praised. Investigating "real crimes", also looks like "goofing off" to police administration.
 
gismo said:
Another alternative is to get realistic looking photos of worthless avionics and photoshop them into a print you can fix in place over the radio stack. If it looks like junk when the thief looks inside with a flashlight, they're less likely to open the door for a closer inspection.
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No one would go to the trouble of stealing this stuff if there wasn't a market for it.
 
Cykoguy said:
This. Ever call in something suspicious and wait to see how long it takes them to come out? We had an active attempted break in last year and they didn't get there until 25 minutes later. I rarely even bother calling about anything anymore because I know 99% of the time it is a waste of both of our time since it will be over or gone by the time they get there.
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And if they do show up they are just as likely to shoot the homeowner.
 
paflyer said:
Maybe if they spent less "manpower" parked in the median looking for expired inspection stickers they'd have the "manpower" to investigate real crimes.
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tawood said:
But that generates revenue for city coffers, and that type of behavior is praised. Investigating "real crimes", also looks like "goofing off" to police administration.
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Driving a vehicle without a current inspection is a real crime. Those who do it probably also fail to register their vehicles. When people violate these laws they are in effect STEALING from society. That's not good. It's probably actually bad.
 
rolivi said:
Driving a vehicle without a current inspection is a real crime. Those who do it probably also fail to register their vehicles. When people violate these laws they are in effect STEALING from society. That's not good. It's probably actually bad.
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OMG....o_O
 
James331 said:
Don't leave your airplane outside, or catch one of the scumb bags and curb stomp him, or at least give him a proper old school beat down, if you get one the others will learn to not mess around on the airport.
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Maybe this is one time you can learn something from CAP.

The steam gauge airplanes are secured with a steel contraption that covers up the radio stack, connects to the control lock and prevents any of the three knobs from being pushed in (kinda hard to start the engine if you can't get the mixture out of ICO), secured with a padlock. They take some getting used to (it's a rite of passage to remove one correctly), but they are quite effective at protecting the radios.
 
MAKG1 said:
Maybe this is one time you can learn something from CAP.

The steam gauge airplanes are secured with a steel contraption that covers up the radio stack, connects to the control lock and prevents any of the three knobs from being pushed in (kinda hard to start the engine if you can't get the mixture out of ICO), secured with a padlock. They take some getting used to (it's a rite of passage to remove one correctly), but they are quite effective at protecting the radios.
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Are they available to purchase for non-CAP plane owners?
 
jsstevens said:
Are they available to purchase for non-CAP plane owners?
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I haven't the slightest idea. I have seen one on one private plane, but it was owned by a CAP instructor.

There is certainly nothing illegal or proprietary about that, and they are obsolete (CAP is not buying steam gauge airplanes anymore, and is gradually retiring those it has), so I'd suspect a few get surplussed here and there.

One would think this would be something Sporty's could sell for $500....or you could have fabricated for a lot less.

EDIT: Looks like these guys sell them, for $400. http://www.rtaerospace.com/prices.htm

The photo looks identical, even down to the "remove before starting engine" label. As if you could start the engine with the mixture at cutoff.... Well, I suppose you could make it run for 10 sec or so.

gustlock-1.jpg
 
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ircphoenix said:
Yes. Because your statement about "just as likely" makes sense based on one article. Apparently it's a 50/50 chance.
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Of course it's a 50/50 chance. Either the police shoot you, or they don't.
 
This thread reminds me why I advise the new owner/student to by an nice older aircraft and strip out the old equipment and up grade to 1 com, intercom, and transponder mode C. leaving space for a "Dock" for the nav stuff.

And carry insurance. 0 de-ductable
 
MAKG1 said:
I haven't the slightest idea. I have seen one on one private plane, but it was owned by a CAP instructor.

There is certainly nothing illegal or proprietary about that, and they are obsolete (CAP is not buying steam gauge airplanes anymore, and is gradually retiring those it has), so I'd suspect a few get surplussed here and there.

One would think this would be something Sporty's could sell for $500....or you could have fabricated for a lot less.

EDIT: Looks like these guys sell them, for $400. http://www.rtaerospace.com/prices.htm

The photo looks identical, even down to the "remove before starting engine" label. As if you could start the engine with the mixture at cutoff.... Well, I suppose you could make it run for 10 sec or so.

gustlock-1.jpg
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So if I bolt cut that one padlock it all comes off?


Tom-D said:
This thread reminds me why I advise the new owner/student to by an nice older aircraft and strip out the old equipment and up grade to 1 com, intercom, and transponder mode C. leaving space for a "Dock" for the nav stuff.

And carry insurance. 0 de-ductable
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Guess this is for VFR ops?

Panel mounting portables is kinda meh, might as well just keep the iPad on your lap
 
GlennAB1 said:
Put a nice note on the entry window stating that all equipment in the aircraft has had tracking devices installed. May fool some. Or that all equipment has owner's info engraved on it.

As for the whole aircraft being stolen; remove the battery, that may stop some, but it didn't stop the thief that took my friends Bonanza. A cable lock around the prop hub, can slow them down.
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I used to disconnect the battery in my Citation if I was leaving it somewhere I wasn't to sure about. Looking back, I would have been better off financially if someone had swiped it!! :eek:
 
James331 said:
So if I bolt cut that one padlock it all comes off?
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You can't find hardened padlocks where you live?

No security is perfect. Not even your threats. A radio stack protected by anything that requires more equipment than "normal" is effective among several hundred targets that don't require a heavy and very suspicious looking piece of equipment (add "noisy" if you don't buy a stupid padlock).
 
True

However I wouldn't land anywhere I felt it nesscary to install that lock.

Mine lives in its hangar, or at my house.

Best to just avoid cesspools where sub humans inhabit.
 
N747JB said:
I used to disconnect the battery in my Citation if I was leaving it somewhere I wasn't to sure about. Looking back, I would have been better off financially if someone had swiped it!! :eek:
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Isn't that SOP for post flight on the Citation anyway?

All the operators I fly with disconnect the battery after flight, even at home base.
 
James331 said:
Why?
So you can frame the photo of your stuff getting jacked?
In my experience cops could care less, even with photos. But they will give you a "report" you could frame next to your photos of your stuff getting stolen.
If you hunt, you're better off using those skills to set a precedence.
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A couple years ago a work person put an IP camera in his window at home. Theft happened a couple doors down. Found a picture of the car on the camera. emailed to Houston Police. HPD saw the car pulled it over for broken tail light. Asked the nervous person about things. Said it was his cousins car. Showed the perp the picture of his car. Asked the perp to pop the trunk found a bunch of stolen circular saws. Perp got a ride to the downtown location. Sure he was out in a couple of days. But worth the trouble. Mount them high so people can't steal them
 
48x being an old fashioned GA field ,with easy access ,there's not much that can be done,short of hiring a security person,which is cost prohibitive.
 
James331 said:
This whole thread reminds me of when I got my wrangler, the guy told me to never lock the doors, said scum bags are too dumb to unzip a side window to get it, so they'll just cut your $1,000+ dollar top and then you'll be out whatever they steal AND a top.
Click to expand...

If you leave the doors open wouldn't that attract a person who would want to steal the car?

paflyer said:
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/n..._shot_by_police_investigating_a_911_call.html
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I'm not a Police Officer but they have a very tough job and they are in a damned if you do or don't situation all the time. Sure there are some crooked/lazy cops out there but they are also Cops that do the right thing. No need to categorize.

James331 said:
True

However I wouldn't land anywhere I felt it necessary to install that lock.

Mine lives in its hangar, or at my house.

Best to just avoid cesspools where sub humans inhabit.
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In YOUR opinion where do the sub humans inhabit?
 
frfly172 said:
48x being an old fashioned GA field ,with easy access ,there's not much that can be done,short of hiring a security person,which is cost prohibitive.
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I'm a big fan of cameras. We put up cameras at a nearby airport and it was amazing when reviewing the footage to see how many people would point at them, walk over, then leave. Maybe they were just interested, maybe it deterred something worse, but I have to believe it at least helps deter some crime. They're cheap now, and they record to the internet, so even if they steal the camera, they're recorded.

Some airports used to give out a link so you could watch what it was recording live. It was interesting to log in and see if there was any activity was there before driving out.
 
FloridaPilot said:
If you leave the doors open wouldn't that attract a person who would want to steal the car?



I'm not a Police Officer but they have a very tough job and they are in a damned if you do or don't situation all the time. Sure there are some crooked/lazy cops out there but they are also Cops that do the right thing. No need to categorize.



In YOUR opinion where do the sub humans inhabit?
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NYC, LAX, TEB, SFO, etc
 
Lowflynjack said:
I'm a big fan of cameras. We put up cameras at a nearby airport and it was amazing when reviewing the footage to see how many people would point at them, walk over, then leave. Maybe they were just interested, maybe it deterred something worse, but I have to believe it at least helps deter some crime. They're cheap now, and they record to the internet, so even if they steal the camera, they're recorded.

Some airports used to give out a link so you could watch what it was recording live. It was interesting to log in and see if there was any activity was there before driving out.
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That is a good idea as well as the lock that was recently posted. I will bring it up to the FBO to see what they say. They are probably going to cry about cost but something like this

http://www.bjs.com/night-owl-8-chan...+2TB+HDD+DVR&gclid=CKmO0-CDzdACFYNEhgodXLUJUw

which is 349 or so will probably be a start. There is a fence that is locked at night but that is not stopping them. They either have the key or climbing the fence.
 
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