Snowboarder… 
LeSving wrote:
So, beware of your droppings But, there’s a catch of course, and it’s the intention. It will only go into effect if the intention is proven to be an “act of terror” (as defined in the law).
I wonder as what the drop toilet in that AN2 I used to fly would qualify 
Dropping whole airplanes is a different matter however..
eurogaguest1980 wrote:
Unfortunately today, these people have a platform that will actually reward them for this anti-social behavior. We as a society need to find a way to deal with it like we would do in real life. Perhaps this case will wake up the various regulators to nudge the idiots and the platforms to reduce these kinds of activities.
Social media are probably the most anti-social triggers we have so far. Cyber-mobbing, fake news, propaganda and this kind of stunt morons show perfectly well where this is going. Of course, there are good contents and of course many people use SM for proper purposes. Also YT has loads of good contents. But this kind of stuff needs to be stopped and regulated out of existance. What would hurt this guy most would be if YT take away his monetisation and close down his channel. Maybe that is the way it has to go: Dagerous and illegal stuff gets thrown out and the creator punished.
He is going to plead guilty for what he did after the stunt and the hearing and sentencing will happen in a week. However, that does not mean that he will not get charged separately for the youtube stunt, unless that was part of the deal for pleading guilty on these charges… We will know only after the hearing. In case he were to be charged with other offenses separately, in the US system, the sentence would be cumulative (that’s how you can end up with something like 270 years of prison…).
I think a jury would find that he didn’t actually do any harm to anybody, that he even cleaned up his own mess, and that FAA is using the case to set precedent with him as theIr victim. I can hear the defense attorney’s line now and I think whether it was used in the plea bargain or will be used, it will get traction in reducing the sentence.
Not gonna reveal what I choose
Hang him !
Another very good take, so I dare to think, by Avweb’s Paul Bertorelli, titled The Trouble With Making Examples Of Stupid Pilot Tricks
Definitely worth a read.
My take would be a fine and probation plus a social media ban for a year or two.
My thinking is: –
- risk to the public, while non-zero, was quite low
- every day that he spends in prison, is a day less that someone who committed a more serious crime doesn’t spend in prison. Prisons (at least here) are full and people regularly get early release simply to make room for someone else.
- the find should be big enough that it takes away all his income from the stunt, and hurts him further. So no profit in it.
- he wanted the fame and presumably the income from youtube. A social media ban for a year or two would really hurt this.
- nobody got hurt.
- Really what we want is to be sure that neither he nor anyone else does something similar. If the fine is big enough, plus the social media ban, it won’t look very attractive to anyone else.
If putting him in jail is the answer, where does it lead? Does someone who bailed out of a damaged glider (which was subsequently shown to actually be flyable even if a bit broken) get prosecuted?
dublinpilot wrote:
If putting him in jail is the answer, where does it lead? Does someone who bailed out of a damaged glider (which was subsequently shown to actually be flyable even if a bit broken) get prosecuted?
No, the question is not that, but tempering with the evidence (and a federal investigation).
I understand that, but these things have a way of “growing legs” and becoming something else. You might find in the future, the public complaining about another aircraft crash where the pilot bailed out, and pointing to this with the comment “The authorities found a way of prosecuting that pilot! They should do the same for this one.”
The ‘technical’ differences can get lost with the passage of time, and everyone will remember this guy as the one who got prosecuted for bailing out of an aircraft and leaving it to crash on anyone that might be below, just for you tube clicks, even though that isn’t what he’s being prosecuted for.
