No prison time!

May as well have just told him not to do it again. I wonder who ratted him out.
 
I am not even certain he was found guilty. When found guilty people are sentenced to serve jail time or pay a fine. He was ordered on probation and to pay an assessment. This sounds like pre trial diversion.
 
As a condition of his probation, Cruise cannot own, operate, act as a consultant, be employed in, or participate in any manner in any aviation-related concern

So does that mean he can never fly again?
 
As a condition of his probation, Cruise cannot own, operate, act as a consultant, be employed in, or participate in any manner in any aviation-related concern

So does that mean he can never fly again?

Sounds like just for his probation term. I wonder if some good boy FAA narc ratted him out or the FAA discovered this on their own by looking for certain ads like he had posted.
 
"aviation related concern" means a business. He can fly privately.

If you split $200 up across 150 flights, that's $1.33 a flight? Ok, tack that on as a service fee and it's a wash. We'll need a separate bill to figure out how much to add on for the lawyer's service fee though.
 
I am not even certain he was found guilty. When found guilty people are sentenced to serve jail time or pay a fine. He was ordered on probation and to pay an assessment. This sounds like pre trial diversion.

People are found guilty at trial, or plead guilty, and put on probation with no jail time every day.
 
Any PPL charging for Part 135 flights on Groupon is an idiot!

That's what craigslist is for...
sightseeing is usually a part 91 op but yeah, still can't do it on a private cert nor without authorization
 
Wow got away with a 200 dollar fine!?
No. He got away on the criminal case with a guilty plea, a federal felony conviction, 3 years probation (including government access to all financial information special condition), and a $200 penalty assessment . In addition, his pilot certificates were revoked and the FAA is in the process of seeking an approximate $13,000 civil penalty.
 
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Yes, but they don’t pay assessments, they pay fines.
Why do you think not? A federal statute specifically provides for it.

As I reported above, He was found guilty, given probation, and had to pay a $200 "assessment."

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Yes, but they don’t pay assessments, they pay fines.

Sure they do. Calling it an assessment is mostly semantics. Many times a sentence will include both fines and assessments. An assessment is more of a fee to defray court costs, and is charged at the same amount to everyone who is sentenced regardless of the offense.
 
Sure they do. Calling it an assessment is mostly semantics. Many times a sentence will include both fines and assessments. An assessment is more of a fee to defray court costs, and is charged at the same amount to everyone who is sentenced regardless of the offense.
Actually, the money collected appears to go to the victims: those that paid for a commercial pilot to fly them, when if fact it was a lowly private pilot. I'd figure it would be $200 per flight.
 
Actually, the money collected appears to go to the victims: those that paid for a commercial pilot to fly them, when if fact it was a lowly private pilot. I'd figure it would be $200 per flight.
"Restitution" goes to the defendant's victims. The "special assessment" is a standard fixed fee per charge based on the level of the offense (misdemeanor or felony) and whether the defendant is a individual or an entity. In this case, Cruise was convicted of two felonies; the assessment for an individual is $100 per felony. It goes into a general crime victims fund which provides grants to (mostly) state crime victim of violent crime compensation programs.
 
So fill me in. I haven't been following this story.
Is the guy qualified to fly the plane, does he have a multi-engine rating, IFR rating, Type rating, hours in type?
If so, the only thing he is missing is a piece of paper, mandated by the FAA, to give him permission to do what he was doing.

I'm not horrified or offended by really good pilots without papers doing what really good pilots can do.
I am horrified and offended by really bad pilots with papers doing what really bad pilots do, because some agency gave them permission.
 
No. He got away on the criminal case with a guilty plea, a federal felony conviction, 3 years probation (including government access to all financial information special condition), and a $200 penalty assessment . In addition, his pilot and medical certificates were revoked and the FAA is in the process of seeking an approximate $13,000 civil penalty.
I was wondering if they pulled his private pilot ticket.
 
I was wondering if they pulled his private pilot ticket.
As I mentioned, they did. I don't know the sequence, but the revocation was probably done well before the FAA referred the case to the DOJ for criminal prosecution.
 
He's already proven that he's willing to fly without the proper license. Do you think that he will quit flying just because they pulled his privates. (Gee, that sounds bad but it's not.)
 
He has the hours, so can't he just take a checkride and get his PPL back?
 
He has the hours, so can't he just take a checkride and get his PPL back?
Typically has to wait a year after revocation to apply. It can be negotiated, but that's doubtful in a case like this.

Once there, it's not only the checkrides. Also the knowledge tests. But yes, the hours count, although he still will need the 3 hours before the checkride.
 
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In the workings of a federal courthouse, this seems rather small potatoes. The assistant associate deputy assistant US attorney who got that folder on his desk had to dispose of it in the cheapest and least involved way possible so he could move on to folder below it with the next federal crime of the century. Probably 'fishing for pelagic fish with a non-pelagic fish permit' or 'cutting the tag off a comforter prior to sale'.
 
As a condition of his probation, Cruise cannot own, operate, act as a consultant, be employed in, or participate in any manner in any aviation-related concern

So does that mean he can never fly again?

Ca he even fly as a passenger on, say, Southwest?


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Typically has to wait a year after revocation to apply. It can be negotiated, but that's doubtful in a case like this.

Once there, it's not only the checkrides. Also the knowledge tests. But yes, the hours count, although he still will need the 3 hours before the checkride.
I thought revocations usually required a 709 ride???
 
I thought revocations usually required a 709 ride???
One of the grounds for revocation is a 709 failure, but it is hardly the only one. Revocation is a penalty for a number of violations, most of which involve serious deviations such as fraudulent entries in applications or repeated violations. There are also mandatory revocations for a few things such as drug offenses.
 
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Typically has to wait a year after revocation to apply. It can be negotiated, but that's doubtful in a case like this.

Once there, it's not only the checkrides. Also the knowledge tests. But yes, the hours count, although he still will need the 3 hours before the checkride.
The CFI I referenced in my pilot deviation story had all his tickets yanked.. He managed to get tehm all back and is now flying 121 flights.
 
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