Passenger jet ‘seconds away’ from collision with gyrocopter
A man who illegally flew a gyrocopter into restricted airspace over Washington DC faces a prison sentence after almost colliding with a passenger plane.
Douglas Hughes from Florida was just seconds away from colliding with Delta Air Lines Flight 1639, which had taken off from Reagan National Airport.
“If the gyrocopter had drifted slightly west, or the airline had taken a slightly more easterly path, a collision could have occurred,” prosecutors said in a court filing.~
However Hughes’ lawyer was sceptical about the claim.
“It seems suspicious that on the eve of sentencing, all of a sudden his flight was about to blow up a commercial airliner,” attorney Mark Goldstone said.
Former postal worker Hughes’ solo flight last year, during which he landed on the lawn of the US Capitol, was part of a political protest and not deemed a danger to national security, but prosecutors are pushing for a jail term to deter others.
“Whether the next airspace violator is an unpopular religious extremist or a popular advocate on any issue of domestic policy, the deterrent message must be clear: If you violate the airspace of our nation’s capital — regardless of your message — you will be punished,” prosecutors wrote.
Following an earlier plea deal prosecutors are seeking a 10-month prison sentence.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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