Police Response to Glider Pilot Arrest

After much controversy amongst pilots about the July 2012 arrest of Robin Fleming for flying over a 'secret no-fly zone,' as reported by AOPA's Sarah Brown, Sheriff J. Wayne Byrd of Darlington County, S.C. offered a response. In the AOPA follow-up article, Byrd explained why drastic measures were taken due to police procedure, and orders by the local FBI, while recognizing that the department "should have realized sooner that the glider was not a threat." He also admitted that the hasty handling was due to the unfamiliarity with the aircraft and the situation.

To read more about Byrd's response, check out the AOPA story here.

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Find out what the editors of Flying thought about the incident by reading Robert Goyer's blog response Pilot Arrested, Charged for Nothing, as well as Stephen Pope's thoughts on the issue in Should Pilots Fear the Police?