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Title: Pilot Loses License Flying the Too-Friendly Skies
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Published: Apr 15, 2009
Author: wired
Post Date: 2009-04-15 19:27:45 by tom007
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Views: 168
Comments: 5
Pilot Loses License Flying the Too-Friendly Skies By Dave Demerjian EmailApril 15, 2009 | 2:20:53 PMCategories: Autopia WTF? Dept. Puma_swede_vidcap If you're gonna lose your pilot's license, David Keith Hartz has found a great way to do it, even though there is no specific rule against having sex in the cockpit. Hartz lost his appeal to regain the flight certificate he lost after engaging in a little, um, in-flight entertainment with Swedish porn star Puma Swede (NSFW). Although the airborne hanky-panky occurred almost four years ago, the Federal Aviation Administration didn't get wind of it until earlier this year when the gossip site TMZ broke the story and then posted a video (NSFW) of the two in action. That's Swede in a frame grab from the video at right. The feds were not happy and yanked Hartz's license. The 52-year-old pilot appealed. Last week he told a National Transportation Safety Board judge that receiving oral sex while flying over San Diego wasn't "the brightest thing" but he's learned his lesson and should be allowed to fly. Judge William Mullins disagreed. "The evidence clearly shows grossly reckless conduct on the part of the respondent," he said after spending an hour reviewing an unedited copy of the film in his chambers. It seems the judge felt flying with your pants around your knees and a porn star blocking access to the flight controls could be a problem. Interestingly, there is no specific rule barring sex in the cockpit, an FAA spokesman told Wired.com, and Hartz could apply for a new license next year. Although the FAA doesn't specifically address sex in the cockpit, spokesman Ian Gregor says Martz violated regulation 91.13(a), which makes it a crime "to operate an aircraft in a careless or reckless manner so as to endanger the life or property of another." "The regulation that Mr. Hartz broke was 91.13(a), careless or reckless operation of an aircraft," Gregor told Wired.com. "That's a broad regulation that covers a wide range of potential offenses. The onus is on the FAA to prove that the alleged violation falls under 91.13(a)." Hartz was at the controls of a a Bell 206B, a four-passenger, 1,700-pound helicopter capable of 140 mph. Martz had loaned the chopper to an adult film company for use in a scene, which explains why there was a video camera handy to film the airborne indiscretion. It wasn't the first time Hartz had run afoul of the authorities, according to Aero-News. He lost his license in 1986 for flying with a forged medical certificate. He lost it again in 2002 for doing aerobatics over a populated area at below 1,500 feet. And in 2006 he was charged with reckless operation of an aircraft after allegedly landing on a public street to pick up Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee. But Martz - who according to his lawyer and a flight instructor has been behaving himself lately - may take to the sky again. Although the FAA can revoke a license, it is permanent only in those cases where the pilot has an irreversible medical condition or illicit drugs are found in the cockpit. Martz can reapply for his license next year. As for Swede, she made the switch from computer sales to porn in 2005 and, according to Steve Javors, editor-in-chief of the trade publication XBiz, is an industry favorite. "She's definitely in the top tier of adult film stars," Javors told Wired.com. "There aren't too many six foot tall Swedish blonds in this business, and she always seems to be having fun when she's working." Frame grab of Puma Swede from TMZ.com See also:
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#4. To: tom007. all (#0)
What does one expect in the cockpit?
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