Paraglider touches ground at JFK and vanishes...???

GLIDE & SEEK AT JFK FLIER'S STUPID STUNT
New York Post
August 21, 2009

http://www.nypost.com/seven/08212009/ne ... 185669.htm

A wingnut piloting a motorized paraglider buzzed two Kennedy Airport runways, landed in a cargo area and flew off before he could be arrested.

The flaky flier circled into the pathway of planes at around 8 p.m. Sunday.

"Looks like some guy on a parachute -- pretty stupid," one pilot radioed a controller as he waited to take off.

At the time, the glider was an estimated 1,000 feet in the air.

"If you're a paraglider or using a home-built airplane, you're pretty stupid flying near there," said Steve Abraham of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association.

The flier briefly landed next to a Brazilian airline's cargo hanger and base, then buzzed off in the bizarre contraption.

"Looks like he hit the ground, dropped something off and now he's airborne again," another pilot on the runway radioed.

NYPD and Nassau County Police helicopters were dispatched to search for and escort the flier back to ground, but came up empty.

The seven air-traffic controllers on duty at the time never spotted the parachute pilot on the ground or on their radar.

"They found nothing and could see no one," said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Jim Peters, who added that the glider was spotted by pilots over two runways.

The controllers played it safe, cautioning planes in the area to look out for a "kite" or "paraglider."

Port Authority cops looked everywhere on the airport for the flier.

"This kind of thing is a concern," said PA spokesman Ron Marisco.

There are no laws prohibiting paragliding or parasailing on Jamaica Bay, which borders the runways.

Just weeks earlier, a small-town pilot got lost and nearly caused a disaster when he steered his single-engine plane dangerously close to a Boeing 747 and forced controllers to reroute other airliners.

Pretty wild that the guy got away. Imagine if he was a suicide bomber? Wrapped in enough explosives he could
definitely do damage to something.

ATC recording of the incident...how did only a couple of pilots see it?

[quote="GothamSpotter"]ATC recording of the incident...how did only a couple of pilots see it?

Strange. Interesting that Nassau 6 was cleared to the east from a previous job and then had to be asked back by
ATC to help in the search. Werent they listening to the reports from the pilots and would have quickly turned and
asked in?
Maybe we need Mulder & Scully in on this one.

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Originally Posted by Gerard

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GothamSpotter

ATC recording of the incident...how did only a couple of pilots see it?

Strange. Interesting that Nassau 6 was cleared to the east from a previous job and then had to be asked back by
ATC to help in the search. Werent they listening to the reports from the pilots and would have quickly turned and
asked in?
Maybe we need Mulder & Scully in on this one.

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Not all reports are investigated at the instant it happens... there is constant coordination between Tower & Tracon, and a delay does incur.

Quote:

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"us caution for a kite on the final approach course..."

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LMAO!!

can anyone get a .mp3 of this? i'd love to hang on to it...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by cancidas

Quote:

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"us caution for a kite on the final approach course..."

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LMAO!!

can anyone get a .mp3 of this? i'd love to hang on to it...

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I presume the youtube audio came from LiveATC.net.

If this guy touches one of my planes, I'll hurt him.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Phil D.

If this guy touches one of my planes, I'll hurt him.

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sounds like he got near one of your 757s. really wonder what happenend there...

Fred was telling me about some killer shots he got the other night... :D :D :D