It turns out there’s a teensy bit more to the story of why a single-engine Piper Warrior made a precautionary landing on a Queens beach on Monday. According to police, 24-year-old pilot Jason Maloney got the idea from watching the TV show “Flying Wild Alaska,” which often depicts off-airport landings.
An ATC recording of the incident posted on LiveATC.net offers a glimpse into what prompted an FAA investigation of the bizarre flight, which departed with Maloney and a male and female passenger from Long Island’s Republic Airport and ended up with its wheels stuck in the sand on Rockaway Beach.
According to the recordings, while maneuvering along the shore south of John F. Kennedy Airport below 500 feet, Maloney asked a controller if he was allowed to land on the beach. “I don’t think so, unless it was an emergency,” the controller replied. “I’m a paramedic,” Maloney said. “Is there anybody I can ask?” The controller told him that all the beaches are public and that only an emergency landing would be allowed. Maloney asked if there were any private beaches nearby, and the controller said he did not believe so.
“You know, tower, my engine might be running a little, teensy, teensy bit rough. A little teensy bit rough,” Maloney then said. The controller asked if he needed help, and Maloney said he did not. “You know what, we should be fine, but I’m going to make a precautionary landing. Is that all right with you?” A landing would be at his own risk, the controller replied. “We got that,” Maloney said. “We’ve got a sick passenger, so we’re not going to declare an emergency, but we’re going to land on the beach.” Once he did so, the controller advised Maloney to wait for police.
When they arrived, a female passenger was throwing up on the beach beside the Piper, according to reports.
It turns out Maloney isn’t a paramedic, as he claimed. But paramedics took him from his parents’ Orange County, New York, home to a local hospital yesterday, reportedly after he suffered a seizure.
