Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 11, 2007 0:46:23 GMT 12
I note the following report from the Marlborough Express about Toby Wallis, the son of Sir Tim Wallis, who has been fined for dangerous use of a helicopter. It sounds as if he possesses the same spirt as his father, something I've often thought about him. I met him a few times back in the early 1990's and he was a great kid then and full of enthusiasm for flying. A chip off the old block.
Helicopter pilot fined for antics in Sounds
The Marlborough Express | Thursday, 7 June 2007
Helicopter pilot Toby Wallis, who towed several people, including a waterskier and a wakeboarder, with his helicopter in the Marlborough Sounds has been fined $3750.
Wallis, 31, pleaded guilty to a charge of careless flying at the Blenheim District Court yesterday after holidaymakers who witnessed the incident in January 2006 complained to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
Appearing for the CAA, lawyer Hugh Boyd-Wilson said Wallis was flying a helicopter which was seen towing waterskiers over the water in Ruakaka Bay, off the Queen Charlotte Sound, often close to the shoreline.
Mr Boyd-Wilson said Wallis dangled several people off the end of a rope hanging from the helicopter, including one who wakeboarded underneath and one on waterskis who was picked up from and returned to a pontoon.
The helicopter was seen doing nosedives and several low passes below the minimum legal height of 500 feet.
Mr Boyd-Wilson said the activities of the helicopter caused "serious concern" to the people in the bay. There were several boats in the bay at the time, he said, most of them moored up. One boat was towing a child on a ski biscuit.
He said under CAA rules people could be suspended from helicopters for rescues or other such activities, but not for sport or recreational purposes. A third person should also have been monitoring the rope, Mr Boyd-Wilson said.
Wallis' activities lasted for about 10 minutes and included picking up a wakeboarder and water skier from a pontoon before the helicopter was seen flying low over the bay before landing.
In an interview with a CAA investigator about the incident, Wallis denied his activities were disruptive and said he had given a safety briefing beforehand, Mr Boyd-Wilson said. He could not remember if anyone was wearing life jackets.
Two other charges laid by the CAA of dangerous flying and low flying were dropped after Wallis said a loss of licence would seriously affect his commercial flying business.
Appearing for Wallis, lawyer David Robinson said his client regretted the incident and had written a letter of apology to the CAA. Mr Robinson said Wallis had not been operating the helicopter in a commercial way during the incident.
Judge Tony Zohrab said he regarded the case as serious but called the incident an error of judgement.
In addition to the fine Wallis was ordered to pay $130 court costs and $250 solicitor's fees.
Helicopter pilot fined for antics in Sounds
The Marlborough Express | Thursday, 7 June 2007
Helicopter pilot Toby Wallis, who towed several people, including a waterskier and a wakeboarder, with his helicopter in the Marlborough Sounds has been fined $3750.
Wallis, 31, pleaded guilty to a charge of careless flying at the Blenheim District Court yesterday after holidaymakers who witnessed the incident in January 2006 complained to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
Appearing for the CAA, lawyer Hugh Boyd-Wilson said Wallis was flying a helicopter which was seen towing waterskiers over the water in Ruakaka Bay, off the Queen Charlotte Sound, often close to the shoreline.
Mr Boyd-Wilson said Wallis dangled several people off the end of a rope hanging from the helicopter, including one who wakeboarded underneath and one on waterskis who was picked up from and returned to a pontoon.
The helicopter was seen doing nosedives and several low passes below the minimum legal height of 500 feet.
Mr Boyd-Wilson said the activities of the helicopter caused "serious concern" to the people in the bay. There were several boats in the bay at the time, he said, most of them moored up. One boat was towing a child on a ski biscuit.
He said under CAA rules people could be suspended from helicopters for rescues or other such activities, but not for sport or recreational purposes. A third person should also have been monitoring the rope, Mr Boyd-Wilson said.
Wallis' activities lasted for about 10 minutes and included picking up a wakeboarder and water skier from a pontoon before the helicopter was seen flying low over the bay before landing.
In an interview with a CAA investigator about the incident, Wallis denied his activities were disruptive and said he had given a safety briefing beforehand, Mr Boyd-Wilson said. He could not remember if anyone was wearing life jackets.
Two other charges laid by the CAA of dangerous flying and low flying were dropped after Wallis said a loss of licence would seriously affect his commercial flying business.
Appearing for Wallis, lawyer David Robinson said his client regretted the incident and had written a letter of apology to the CAA. Mr Robinson said Wallis had not been operating the helicopter in a commercial way during the incident.
Judge Tony Zohrab said he regarded the case as serious but called the incident an error of judgement.
In addition to the fine Wallis was ordered to pay $130 court costs and $250 solicitor's fees.
