DOH! Kitfox on the beach

[Geowitz]

From my neck of the woods near Savannah, GA -

http://savannahnow.com/latest-news/2010-05-23/airplane-lands-tybee-beach-pilot-arrested

City of Tybee ordinance got him for reckless conduct and operating motor vehicl on beach.

Cop looks proud doesn't he. Sucks...

[Paul Z]

So after the arrested you, for endangering all of those people I see in the picture. How did you get the Plane off the Beach?? Did they make you trailer it?

[Geowitz]

It wasn't me and it was just yesterday, So I'm not really sure what they did.

Looks like they pulled it off with a rubber tired backhoe.

I've kinda always wondered what the technical legality of this was and I'm still wondering.

And yeah, the North beach is typically empty with a few walkers every once in a while.

[DesertFox4]

City of Tybee ordinance got him for reckless conduct and operating motor vehicl on beach. You mean you can't do anything but "walk" on this beach?:confused:
What a total waste of a perfectly good beach. Thank God no Spotted Owls or Snail Darters were frightened.

[hansedj]

About 3 years ago Mark Jensens plane was here in Brigham City while he got his tail wheel endorsement. I got some good pictures of it, very nice plane, he lived in Vernal Ut at the time. I guess eastern laws are different.

[Slyfox]

Unfortunately we are govorned by The faa and the local laws. Meaning, anything that can be enforced by local police are also thrown at the pilot. I've always been on a premise that if there is restrictions on the gound like this one, it applies to airplanes as well, they are motorized. Did you know if you are a float plane and land on a lake this is nonmotorized, you know, you can't take a boat on that lake with a motor, you better not land on that lake, now your a boat. Don't be thinking you can land in a school yard and get away with that one either. Just make a point to cover your back side when flying into places like this, even a beach, may be set up for a reason to restrict motorized vehicles, I'm sure the 4 wheelers have made quit an impact. This guy not only has the FAA to answer on this one but the local authorities as well. Sorry he is in all that trouble. Probably would have been a good idea when he saw someone coming twards him to jump in the plane and get out of dodge. Best thing to do is check local ordinances first before attempting such a thing.

[Slyfox]

One more thing, landing on a country road, think twice, if caught you can get it there also. Off road vehicles you know. Now I think the cop in this case could have just given a warning and let the guy leave with a promise not to return, so I think he was flexing his man muscle if you know what I mean.

[SkyPirate]

Funny thing is ..the airplane has less impact on the beach ..then the 4 wheeler ..the red jeep and the smack hoe er I mean backhoe,..but this is ok in the eyes of the law,..
,..like slyfox said ..you see someone coming that looks like they have an agenda ..haul tail and get out of there.
It's not like that on all east coast beaches,..and law's are left to interpretation by some gung ho wanna be's that shouldn't be given the authority they are given,..the powers that be probably gave that officer the beach to patrol because he was harrassing motorist too much that were from out of state,..tourists . which can be an econimc no no for the area.

clearly another "Do as I say,.. not as I do" situation

Chase

[SkyPirate]

I looked at the photo's again ,..I still didn't s any big "X"'s on either end of the beach ,..:cool:

Chase

[Slyfox]

It goes back to my belief, we are only free in this country if we have the proper permits:eek:

[Slyfox]

case in point. the backhoe is on the beach because it was permitted to be there.

[SkyPirate]

As hot and muggy as it gets here ,..I'm liking Missouri more,..where I am at..no permits ..no zoning,..no one to complain about starting up an airplane or hot rod a 2:00am, ..and if there is enough room on the beach ,,feel free to land :) although it may attract attention ,.as Carl Edwards found out when he landed on a sand bar ,..but no reprocusions were administered,.. you can even carry a weapon on yor hip in this state without a permit and walk into almost any public establishment,..don't try it in a bank ,..you might make head lines too:cool:

Chase

[Slyfox]

OK chase, it took a permit to get this baby.

http://home.comcast.net/~steveallbee/bigfish1.JPG

[SkyPirate]

wow ,..I'd of paid the cost of the permit too ,..being an avid hunter/fisher ..and I don't mean I hunt avid's ha ha
Permits of that premise are justifiable,.not always ..but you have the chance to reep the rewards of purchasing a permit to catch something like that :) Nice Fish~!!

Chase

[Slyfox]

That's just one of many. My point is, our freedoms are based on the permits we hold.

[SkyPirate]

well at any rate..I'd say Mark Jensens has the earned the right to post a photo of his landing one the beach in the "Off airport landings" Post ,..and if he hasn't made kitfox of the month yet ,..I vote him in as a candidate :)


point well taken Slyfox :) some permits are justifiably installed to create envy ,..I'm definately envious ha ha

Chase

PS ..I'd post a photo of my last deer taken but I couldn't find a camera with a big enough panoramic lense to get all of his rack in the shot,..ha ha I'm kidding of course ..he was just a little 10 pointer,.. 210 lbs ,,there abouts

[Slyfox]

TEll you what. You forget the family get togethers and come over here instead. I'll take you for some flying and fishing. More than likely you will be forgetting texas and moving up to eastern washington. How about it.

Oh and I have a lake cabin on this lake with the fish above.

[SkyPirate]

tempting,..definately tempting :) I know I'd enjoy the company.

Chase

[Av8r3400]

All the pithy banter aside, this thread is really important.

Know the rules, ordinances or laws of where you are intending to "off airport" land PRIOR to doing so.

With the recent (accidental) killing of a jogger on the beach by an airplane the mainstream agenda pushers in the media would like nothing better that to stick it to all of us stupid "rich" people with airplanes.

Last winter there was a similar story of a couple of idiots who landed their ski planes on a frozen lake in the Twin Cities. Big fines and worse: big negative publicity!



DON'T BE PART OF THE PROBLEM



[soapbox=off]

[Slyfox]

Yup, just reread my post #6, we can try all we want to justify landing in places like this, but in the end, the law will override. Please make sure your landing site is legal.

[Monocock]

Whoever it was and whatever the rules are over there in the US, I take my hat off to the guy.

One life. Live it.

:D

[akflyer]

all you have to do is have your contingency speach ready... engine was running rough, I landed on the beach, checked the fuel sumps and drained off some water. Engine is now running fine and I am ready to depart. Have used that excuse more than once to get into a lake or area that was frowned upon being in.

About the only reason you can declare an emergency (or deem it an emergency in your own mind) is water in the fuel if you want to be able totakeoff again without having the plane looked at my a mechanic and signed off. If you say it was water and is now running fine, you can take off right away without further inspection. Atleast, that is the way it works up here :D

[Slyfox]

you need to read the article on this on the first post. It said the cop watched them land and do nothing to the plane than went on a walk down the beach with his mom. In this case you come back with a, " I landed here because the engine was running poorly, I landed and made a phone call and am now waiting for someone to come and help me out". THe most noted thing I read that has my blood boiling is they were arrested and charged with reckless endangerment amonst other things, just plain BS. Of course We all don't know the whole story, so trying to stay neutral is hard.

[akflyer]

ok maybe I should have spelled it out a little better for those who have a hard time thinking out of the box... you see a spot you want to land but are not sure if you should.. use the ole stand by line I said. quick fuel drain, take a walk to get the shakes to stop cause your nervous about what just happened, then fire it up and make sure it "runs right" then ya leave.. Just an option to those who find themselves in an akward situation. it also works well when setting down on roads when you are really waiting out weather if you are asked why are there..

[Slyfox]

I totally agree. Looking past this situation. I for one just don't like the idea of landing anywhere outside a runway. Why, this that happened, is it dangerous to land outside a runway, I don't think so. But there sure are a bunch of yahoos that think they are something special and ruin your day week or the rest of your life if given a chance. I have scoped out a few landing spots that look cool, may just do it. will I post the pics, probably not, don't want some faa dude seeing it and ending a good day. Same with vids, I don't post those either. Would be cool, but I love to fly and don't want to loose it.

[Papa Beach]

Fuel drain on the beach? Environmental laws will get you there too!:rolleyes:

[akflyer]

Nope, you can check fuel with your tester, then dump it back in the tanks...

There is a way around just about everything out there!

[Lion8]

I can agree with the authorities to some degree. The pilot should be fined for stupidity. Had he said that he thought he hit a bird and wanted to make a safe landing to check to see that everything was ok, I'm sure it would have been a 'non-event'. I used to fly with a couple knuckleheads that would touch their wheels on the beach in the summer time between people in the water and people on the beach. I got away from those idiots quick. They started out landing on the desolated beach as well, then worked up to this final stunt.
Not long ago, a pilot flew his disabled plane onto a beach and killed a person walking on this beach. The guy could have landed his airplane in the breakers as this was in March and no one would have been swimming then. The results would have been the same for the aircraft but no one would have been killed.

[Geowitz]

Just to clarify. The fella who landed on the beach causing the death was actually on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina, which is only a few miles away from Tybee Island Georgia(where this incident occured) by water so landing on the beach is kind of a touchy subject around here. What happened there was his prop broke off and spewed hydraulic oil from the constant speed mechanism all over the windshield. He was trying to land at the waters edge, but couldn't see directly in front of him. The guy jogging had an ipod playing in his ears and literally NEVER knew what was coming.

[Dorsal]

Which brings me to q question I have often wondered about which is does anyone put horns (or similar noise maker) in their planes? A recurring nightmare for me is that I have an engine out, a nice place to land like a golf course and because my engine is out there is no way to warn folks I am coming down. I believe there was a fellow Kitfoxer that was lined up on a road dead-stick and could not warn some cyclists that he needed the road. In this instance his attempt to avoid them cost him his life. It seems like it might be a simple safety feature to be able to through a switch and have one of those stupid car alarms going off while you are making an off-airport landing. Not sure if this would have helped the jogger with the Ipod but it might have.

[GWright6970]

I am reading EVERY SINGLE THREAD on here, and learning a bunch, when I came across this thread! HISTORY!!!!!

In April 1969 I arrived at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah to transition in Cobra gunships; with me was my 1968 dune buggy. Classy dang VW chasis with a Porsche engine and drive train out of a wrecked 911. Chrome roll bars, candy apple red over silver metal flake.. a trip!

For about a month I drove on the beach, never fast, never with the crowds there... AND!!!.... no one ever said a word to me. I went off to Vietnam for a year (to serve with the 1/9th Cav, Head Hunters, First Cavalry Division, for my fellow vets info.)

When I returned at the end of the year, driving on the beach was STRICTLY prohibited... HUGE signs at every entry point. NO DRIVING, and boy did they mean it.

That has always made me smile... all they had to do was ask me not to do it, and I would have stopped immediately! They went the route of an ordinance to keep me and followers off the beach... and now this??!! Ahhh
How did they get from dune buggies to aircraft??!! I'd read the exact wording of the ordinance!!

Take care out there, and fly safe!

[rwaltman]

It did look familiar: "May 23, 2010"
http://www.13wmaz.com/video/87685886001/0/Pilot-Arrested-for-Landing-Plane-on-Beach
I think it was CDE2FLY training under a false identity.

[Dave F]

More oldie beach flying movies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B59NnyxuC4w (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B59NnyxuC4w)