rjnoe@ihlts.UUCP (Roger Noe) (08/31/84)
I got the following from Associated Press and thought it would be of interest
to the readers of this newsgroup.
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Passenger on Plane That Delayed Shuttle Launch Feels `Awfully Stupid'
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- A passenger on a private plane that
delayed the maiden launch of the space shuttle Discovery by seven
minutes Thursday morning said he feels "awfully stupid" about the
incident.
The Federal Aviation Administration says it is investigating the
penetration of the Cape Canaveral danger zone, which could cost the
pilot his license and a $1,000 fine.
The plane, a Piper Aztec flown by Dr. William Clarke of
Jacksonville, held up the shuttle flight for six minutes and 50
seconds while an Air Force AC-130 and an FAA plane chased it away.
"This is the first time we've had any airplanes offshore like
that," said Air Force Capt. Steve Duttry. The plane was 10 miles
east of the launch pad.
The FAA plane followed the Piper to Jacksonville to determine
who was piloting the craft, Duttry said.
Plane owner Clarke holds commercial, instrument, glider,
single-engine and multi-engine ratings, said Janet Rutter of the
FAA.
Clarke declined to comment on the incident, which is under
investigation by the FAA. The agency had posted notices, warning
pilots to stay out of the area for three hours before and the few
minutes after the launch.
At least 12 planes have flown into restricted airspace during
shuttle launches at Kennedy Space Center in the past, NASA
spokesman Mitch Varnes said Thursday.
But this was the first such incident to delay a shuttle
countdown, he said.
Robin Clark, an editor at The Florida Times-Union who was a
passenger aboard Clarke's plane, said the physician had flown to
the area on three previous occasions to watch shuttle launches.
Clark was not on assignment for the newspaper at the launch.
The pilot "had watched from the west side (of the space center)
before," Clark said. "Being east is preferable to being west,
because you don't have the sun in your eyes" for a morning launch.
The pilot was trying to avoid the warning areas marked on
navigational charts, Clark said.
"We were in the warning area but outside of the restricted
area," Clark said. "I thought we had the right to be there. It's
hard to feel badly enough. The enormity is hard to grasp. You just
feel awfully stupid."
Clark, who has been a licensed pilot for six years, said he saw
an Air Force AC-130 flying below the Aztec.
"The plane looked like it was on maritime patrol," he said.
"The next time I saw him, he was off our wing tip."
FAA investigators questioned Clarke and his two passengers after
both aircraft landed at Craig Field Municipal Airport in
Jacksonville.
Jack Barker, a spokesman for the FAA in Atlanta, said the matter
was under investigation.
"Enforcement action has been initiated," Barker said. "We
can't say any more beyond that."
The dozen pilots who have been caught in restricted areas off
the launch site have had their licenses suspended for an average of
60 days, but no fines have been levied, he said.
In similar incidents in the past, the FAA has suspended the
pilot's certification. The maximum suspension period is one year.
AP-NR-08-31 0011EDT
--
"It's only by NOT taking the human race seriously that I retain what
fragments of my once considerable mental powers I still possess."
Roger Noe ihnp4!ihlts!rjnoe