Pilot Flies Near Statue Of Liberty, Intercepted By NYPD

This Statue of Liberty fly-by cost a guy his job

The weather was gorgeous so Barry Maggio, 59-year-old Massachusetts resident, decided to fly an ultra lightweight aircraft around New York City—and within 150 feet of the Statue of Liberty. According to the Wall Street Journal, "the U.S. Parks Police notified the Federal Aviation Administration, the New York Police Department launched a chopper to intercept the flight. The police helicopter radioed Mr. Maggio as he neared the George Washington Bridge" yesterday morning.

Maggio was flying an Apollo Aircraft Monsoon—which sort of looks like a hand glider. The NYPD chopper escorted him to Westchester Airport, where he was questioned. Maggio said, "I haven't lived here in a while but I guess I didn't realize that security was that tight... [Security is] obviously different in the city here, in Lower Manhattan, and I didn't take that into account."

He had videotaped his three-hour journey, and the authorities reviewed the video but once it was determined "they weren't terrorism videos," he was released.

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By Jen Chung in News on June 1, 2010 2:54 PM

Comments [rss]

chuzzlewit

mr magoo? he does crap like this all the time, on account of he can't see too good. was a heavily stereotyped chinese houseboy injured in the incident?

jobalaya

Probably a Red Sox fan, so they definitely should have arrested his a$$.

Sketto

Understandable. Perhaps he hadn't heard the news about 9/11 all the way up there in Massachusetts.

SlappyJ

They should have shot this dick down.

r1b2

Putz.

EastRiver

Maggio was flying an Apollo Aircraft Monsoon—which sort of looks like a hand glider.

That sounds like something on the menu at a massage parlor.

longacre

Not only security concerns, but FAA implimented some fairly complicated rules for flying in the Hudson corridor since the chopper/plane crash, sort of breaking it up into an express lane/local lane arrangement. If he was within 150 feet of the statue without prior permission, he was definitely breaking those rules.