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Reckless pilots will be investigated, vows Civil Aviation Director General
- plane flies dangerously close to Kaieteur Falls
A screenshot taken of the video as the commercial aircraft was approaching the Kaieteur Falls
Having learnt that a local pilot flew his aircraft in a dangerous manner near the Kaieteur Falls, Director General of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has vowed to pursue any pilot guilty of similar recklessness.
A video of the alleged recklessness was posted on YouTube on June 3, 2015 on David Johnstone’s channel. However, yesterday was the first time that the GCAA Director General heard of the incident.
The video shows an aircraft approaching the Kaieteur Water Falls and dangerously pulling up a mere feet away from the rock shelter of the falls.
Field asked to be furnished with the information and assured that steps will be taken to have the situation dealt with in the manner in which it deserves.
“That is very dangerous operation. That is not the type of operation the Civil Aviation Authority will condone and you will hear the results of those investigations when my inspectors investigate those incidents.”
Field said that that kind of operation will only serve to kill Guyana’s tourism industry because the activity sends the wrong message to tourists. He said that the local aviation sector does not need daredevil pilots.
“I often say to young pilots, your job is to take your bag, walk to that aircraft, examine it, take off, climb to your altitude, land at your destination, pick up your bag and walk away from the aircraft. If you have to do that a thousand times the same way, you do it a thousand times.”
Field said that the GCAA is not into ‘flying and dashing’. He said that such behaviour is not even for the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) but rather for the United States of America Army.
“If you want to do that, you go fly and get enlisted in the US Air Force or the Canadian Air Force where they fly F-16 and all those other fighter jets. We have a commercial operation. Each pilot in this country is certified commercially. We do not have military regulations, we have commercial regulations.”
Field said that when the GDF pilots engage in security operations, it is covered under the state but all other commercial operations are governed by the GCAA regulations. He said that the license given to pilots affords them a privilege and not a right. As a result, he said that the license can be withdrawn or suspended by the Authority.
“We expect all pilots to operate their aircraft in accordance with the rules and regulations of the civil aviation regulations and not some air force pilot.”
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