"WASHINGTON – The mailman from Florida who landed his small gyrocopter on the West Lawn of the U.S. Captiol is due in federal court Thursday afternoon where formal charges are expected to be made against the 61-year-old postal worker.

 

Doug Hughes was quickly arrested Wednesday after he flew his ultralight gyrocopter through closely protected airspace and landed on the West Lawn of the Capitol.

 

He announced his plans on the Internet and told his hometown newspaper in advance.

 

Stunned tourists watched Wednesday afternoon as Hughes flew near the Captiol. Hughes claimed he was delivering letters to all 535 members of Congress in order to draw attention to campaign finance corruption. Instead, many say, Hughes refreshed concerns about safety in what’s supposed to be heavily protected airspace.

 

House Homeland Security panel Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said the pilot landed on his own, but that had he made it much closer to the Capitol authorities were prepared to shoot him down.

 

"Had it gotten any closer to the speaker's balcony they have long guns to take it down, but it didn't. It landed right in front," McCaul said.

 

Secret Service spokesman Brian Leary said media reports earlier in the day claiming the Secret Service Tampa Field Office had been alerted to the flight in advance were not true.

 

"The subject involved in today's incident had come to the attention of the USSS approximately one and a half years ago," Leary said. "On October 4, 2013, the Secret Service obtained information from a concerned citizen about an individual purporting their desire to land a single manned aircraft on the grounds of the United States Capitol or the White House." He added a complete investigation was conducted at the time.

 

The Federal Aviation Administration said the pilot had not been in contact with air traffic controllers and the FAA didn't authorize him to enter restricted airspace.

 

Airspace security rules that cover the Capitol and the District of Columbia prohibit private aircraft flights without prior coordination and permission. Violators can face civil and criminal penalties.

 

The White House said President Obama had been briefed on the situation.

 

Witnesses said the craft approached the Capitol from the west, flying low over the National Mall and the Capitol reflecting pool across the street from the building. It barely cleared a row of trees and a statue of Gen. Ulysses Grant. The gyrocopter landed hard and bounced and the pilot was quickly arrested.

 

The open-air aircraft sported a U.S. Postal Service logo.

 

One witness told The Associated Press that when the aircraft landed, police with rifles yelled at the pilot not to move, and told bystanders to run, with their heads down.

 

About two hours after the landing, police said a bomb squad had cleared the aircraft, and that authorities would be moving it to a secure location.

 

The incident once again thrusts Washington’s airspace into the spotlight. In January,a quadcopter drone crashed onto the White House grounds, sparking calls for tighter security.

 

A gyrocopter resembles a small helicopter. However, unlike a helicopter, a gyrocopter’s blades are not powered, with the aircraft relying instead on an engine-powered propeller to provide thrust. Often used as recreational aircraft, gyrocopters have also been deployed in law enforcement."

 

Link: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/04/16/gyrocopter-pilot-expected-in-federal-court-thursday-as-questions-mount-over/?intcmp=latestnews

This guy's a liberal nut bar who thought he was going to be hailed as a hero. The plans for his antics were know to local media in Tampa. If they knew he was going to commit a crime are they under any obligation to report it to authorities?

Stinger Missile would have took care of any future flights.

Stinger Missile would have took care of any future flights.

 

For sure. Could you see it now if that really would have happened. They are saying if he was just a few feet higher he would have been shot out of the air. And fighter jets would have been deployed. Wow! How much did this just cost us taxpayers? Sounds like a bill should follow his release from jail.

Not such a great idea, after all!

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/man-landed-gyrocopter-u-s-capitol-rejects-deal-article-1.2266590

 

 

A man who flew a gyrocopter through some of America’s most restricted airspace before landing at the U.S. Capitol said Monday that he’s rejected a plea offer in the case that would have involved several years in prison.

 

Douglas Hughes is scheduled to appear later Monday in federal court in Washington for a status hearing in his case. He said in a brief telephone interview before the hearing that he had rejected an offer that included significant jail time because it didn’t seem just for an act of civil disobedience in which no one got hurt. Hughes has said his April 15 flight in the bare-bones aircraft was intended to call attention to the influence of big money in politics. Hughes says it’s now more likely that his case will go to trial.

 

At a hearing in April, Hughes pleaded not guilty to the six charges he faces and said he was open to the possibility of a plea deal. The charges he faces carry up to 9 1/2 years in prison if he is convicted. Those include two felonies: operating as an airman without an airman’s certificate and violating aircraft registration requirements. Those charges carry a maximum of three years in prison. He also faces three misdemeanor offenses of violating national defense airspace, each carrying a maximum of one year in prison.

I honestly would have been perfectly fine with them shooting this guy out of the air. At some point, someone is going to have to be made an example of.

As a few others have mentioned, and I agree, they should have blown him out of the sky! He would most likely be the last one to fly in restricted airspace on purpose.

 

I don't care who is in the Whitehouse, if someone jumps the fence, shoot and kill them, they would most likely the last to attempt it.

 

Some people see this pampering as invitation to do it themselves.

The mailman from Florida

 

All I needed to see.