Saw this happening live last night but there's an article and video available now:

http://kyw.com/news/local_story_016101408.html

A Philadelphia police helicopter was among the air support called in to try and communicate with the pilot, who officials say was flying "erratically." At times, they said, the aircraft banked steeply dangerously closes to homes and streets.

Pilot may have been FUI.

Police Helicopters need to start carrying sidewinders.

The guy was drunk: http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/n...al/7731103.htm . As for the Philly cops using Sidewinders, thatsa great idea for their arsenal. In the past they used a Philly Police Helicopter to drop a Philly Police manufactured C4 bomb on the roof of a really strange religous group gathered in a house in West Philly. The group called itself MOVE (it doesnt mean anyting they say). They also used two army surplus .50 caliber M2 machine guns to strafe the house for days. The cops managed to kill some children and women by bullets and flames over a few days.

MisterNice

The roof also caught fire which resulted in the neighborhood being burnt down.

Urban renewal

A drunken Pottstown pilot who flew a single-engine plane over Philadelphia International Airport Jan. 15 came within 900 feet of a 747 jetliner, Montgomery County's district attorney said yesterday after filing new charges. John V. Salamone was arraigned on charges of drunken driving, risking a catastrophe and reckless endangerment.
Limerick police had already charged Salamone with public drunkenness. If convicted of the new charges, he faces a maximum of 11 years in prison.

"That airliner, I'm told, was fully loaded with passengers," said District Attorney Bruce L. Castor Jr., who called Salamone's flight a "near miss."

Tests showed that Salamone's blood-alcohol content was 0.15 percent, and that his blood contained alcohol and Valium. The legal limit for drivers is 0.08 percent, for pilots it's 0.04 percent.

Castor filed the drunken driving charge based on his interpretation of the law that the airways above the county can be treated as roads. Pennsylvania law does not address drinking and flying. He said he would ask a judge to review his decision���. http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/n...al/7832007.htm

MisterNice

http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive.../192-full.html


http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/news/vid...pilottape.html

Philadelphia Pilot Faces More Charges

We told you Jan. 19 and Jan. 26 about the case of the allegedly drunk pilot who raised havoc over Philadelphia and southern New Jersey a couple of weeks back, but the story keeps getting better (worse). Authorities now say John Salamone was also taking Valium when he took his Cherokee on a four-hour tear and they've also added the charge of "risking a catastrophe" by allegedly coming within 900 feet of a Boeing 747 loaded with passengers. Meanwhile a local television station has obtained a tape of tower conversations recorded during the ordeal (see below). In one exchange, the controller warns a Learjet that "there's no rhyme or reason to what his flight direction is going to be and his altitude's changing constantly." The Lear pilot responds, suggesting that the aircraft he saw appeared to be practicing aerobatics. Salamone is also alleged to have almost hit a police helicopter escorting him back to his home airport of Limerick, where he was convinced to land after being reminded that he would soon run out of fuel. All the usual authorities are continuing their investigations and Salamone has been grounded.

Big Furry Deal.

People who commit the heinous crime of violating airspace do so for a variety of reasons, probably the least of which is terrorism.

In this case, it's looking like FUI. Hardly a shoot-to-kill offense, as is the case with most other airspace violations.

Time to stop overreacting, folks.

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"Give me Liberty or give me Death." - Patrick Henry

The Philly cops should of placed the requisite 0.25 lb of C4 somewhere on this guys head and blown it and him to smithereens, because if the guy is a democrat, most of the Philly judges will let him go with the "normal stern warning" never to do it again.

MisterNice