There are significantly more details in the article now than there were yesterday. But I think he's referring to when he took off from the back of the flatbed.The text of the article implies he was IN the helicopter when they craned it off. Why the hell did they allow that?
Why not just wait for them to leave or take their government lunch break and just go, if he has permission from the property owner, and it's marked on a sectional, legally why not basically just tell the townies to F' off and pull collective?
Leinsing said he used a Federal Aviation Administration map listed the helipad. He said he had permission to land on it and was also given the security codes to the building’s doors.
City building officials, police, firefighters and the fire marshal were called to the scene and determined that the wooden pad, which had not been maintained, did not meet fire code standards.
“Wooden pads are not allowed anymore,” Monck said. “This wood was bent and pulling out. We were afraid boards would hit the rotor or fly into the ‘copter. There was no fire suppression near the pad.”
That’s probably what I would have tried. The city officials might have been mad but what city ordinances are they going to cite you with breaking? There probably aren’t any, unless they make some up. Even if they make some up, the fines would likely be less than the cost of the crane and truck ride he took.
This kind of reaction by people always makes me a little nervous when playing around off airport. It is an unusual activity for my area and well meaning individuals could easily cause me a lot of headache by calling in an “airplane crash”.
My thoughts exactly. It is a free country. (or at least used to be) Would the police have tried to stop him by force if he had tried to take off? That would be pretty gruesome and I assume end up in a huge battle ending in the pilot being let go in exchange for his signature on a hush order. Rings a bell?Why not just wait for them to leave or take their government lunch break and just go, if he has permission from the property owner, and it's marked on a sectional, legally why not basically just tell the townies to F' off and pull collective?
FYI: helicopter in the air is controlled by FAA. Helicopter on the ground controlled by local government. You would be surprised how many small towns have air rules. There have been many a rotor pilot who stopped for a pizza or take a photo only to get a ticket or worse as in this case.
My guess is FAA would get involved at that point. If the pilot said, "F this", fired up and started to take off I'm sure the city guys would have made a complaint that they or others had been "put in danger". And since the PIC is responsible for the safety of flight, FAA might decide to hang the pilot as a way to make nice.But how many are enforceable, as in pull collective and issue a warrant or F off
All depends on the local law as far as unauthorized landing. But if Barney Fife is waving at you to shutdown and you decide to pull pitch... well you just left the aviation side and entered the "fleeing a police officer" side. Remember there are four people a pilot must present their certificate/medical to on request: FAA, TSA, NTSB, and any federal, state or local law enforcement. I know of several pilots that would suggest shutting down.But how many are enforceable, as in pull collective and issue a warrant or F off
There's no question in my mind that Barney Fife made this situation more hazardous. The helicopter was already on the roof. Pick upany fod and let him take off. I'm sure the fire marshal knows some guys who could hypothetically put out the hypothetical fire.