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Well, now that the holidays have ended and my schedule is more normal (thank you, travelers, for enabling my addictions) I can get back to posting. And boy, this one's fun.
So, when I have time I help out at a nearby flight school operated by one of my coworkers. They (we?) provide airplane rentals as well as lessons, and it's okay if a client makes arrangements to rent an aircraft for several days. The most popular traveling plane in the fleet is a Diamond DA40, a little Austrian-built four-seater that looks like a sperm cell grew wings and a t-tail.
One of our renters has always been a bit of a self-important pain-in-the-ass. He always refers to himself third-person style as "the Pilot in Command." As in "I know this plane can fly for an hour on the fuel it has, but I'm the pilot in command and I want it topped off" of "well, the pilot in command wants this plane towed to the T-line before we start it up."
Well, Mr. PIC rents the 40 for a weekend. Fine, whatever. If the plane isn't flying it's not generating revenue, just like the big boys. Fast forward to the end of his weekend. I'm at the school helping with dispatch and we are tracking his flight. About an hour out, his track disappears. We thought it a little odd, and after 30 minutes of not seeing the track resume, we call the FAA to report and overdue plane. About 20 minutes later, they get back to us. Having contacted the nearest field to the end of track, they discover that our plane had landed, taken on fuel, and had then parked on the T-line by the fly-in restaurant. We then called that airport operations center and asked if the plane was still there. They reported that it had just started up and was taxiing out. The chief's wife (and therefore the head of the school) texted Mr. PIC and asks him if he stopped and why, getting a reply that they had been running low on fuel and they got hungry.
FAR/AIM Part 91.151 requires that during a daylight VFR flight, and aircraft must possess enough fuel onboard to fly to the destination filed on the flight plan plus remain airborne for another 30 minutes. Mr. PIC had given the school's field as his destination with no stops and thereby filed and flown an illegal flight plan. He was also an hour overdue, forcing us to cancel a lesson that was supposed to take place after a 30-minute turn around of this aircraft and losing the school several hundred dollars in revenue.
The owners of the school conferenced several days after this incident and decided to deny him further service, giving him official notification by email. An hour after this email is sent, the phone rings. This is the conversation between the chief's wife (CW) and the renter (PIC).
PIC: Hey, CW, what the fuck does this email mean about denial of service?!
CW: Well, as the email says, under state law, we are permitted to deny service to anyone for any reason. We are exercising that right due o your repeated negligence and recklessness with our property.
PIC: Okay, that's some fucking bullshit. I have always been a safe pilot. I wasn't reckless with shit!
CW: Well, I know that the flight that prompted this denial was illegal. You did not have enough fuel onboard to meet regulations. You landed without informing us of your delay and were over an hour overdue causing us to lose revenue. Plus, we had to find out that our aircraft was safe by contacting the FAA to report it. This is just the most recent example of your unacceptable behavior with our airplanes and we no longer want your business.
PIC: Okay, that flight plan was not illegal because of the fuel requirements. We landed because we didn't have enough fuel. As the pilot in command, I thought it a safe decision to divert and refuel. And I sent you a text when you asked where we were. I demand that you still provide me with rental service.
CW (after trying to wrap her head around his excuse): Uh, no, we are not going to allow you to rent from us again. If you want to rent planes, do it with someone else.
She thereafter hung up.
They've ben waiting for Mr. PIC to show up to carry on the complaint in person, but apparently it hasn't happened yet.
So, when I have time I help out at a nearby flight school operated by one of my coworkers. They (we?) provide airplane rentals as well as lessons, and it's okay if a client makes arrangements to rent an aircraft for several days. The most popular traveling plane in the fleet is a Diamond DA40, a little Austrian-built four-seater that looks like a sperm cell grew wings and a t-tail.
One of our renters has always been a bit of a self-important pain-in-the-ass. He always refers to himself third-person style as "the Pilot in Command." As in "I know this plane can fly for an hour on the fuel it has, but I'm the pilot in command and I want it topped off" of "well, the pilot in command wants this plane towed to the T-line before we start it up."
Well, Mr. PIC rents the 40 for a weekend. Fine, whatever. If the plane isn't flying it's not generating revenue, just like the big boys. Fast forward to the end of his weekend. I'm at the school helping with dispatch and we are tracking his flight. About an hour out, his track disappears. We thought it a little odd, and after 30 minutes of not seeing the track resume, we call the FAA to report and overdue plane. About 20 minutes later, they get back to us. Having contacted the nearest field to the end of track, they discover that our plane had landed, taken on fuel, and had then parked on the T-line by the fly-in restaurant. We then called that airport operations center and asked if the plane was still there. They reported that it had just started up and was taxiing out. The chief's wife (and therefore the head of the school) texted Mr. PIC and asks him if he stopped and why, getting a reply that they had been running low on fuel and they got hungry.
FAR/AIM Part 91.151 requires that during a daylight VFR flight, and aircraft must possess enough fuel onboard to fly to the destination filed on the flight plan plus remain airborne for another 30 minutes. Mr. PIC had given the school's field as his destination with no stops and thereby filed and flown an illegal flight plan. He was also an hour overdue, forcing us to cancel a lesson that was supposed to take place after a 30-minute turn around of this aircraft and losing the school several hundred dollars in revenue.
The owners of the school conferenced several days after this incident and decided to deny him further service, giving him official notification by email. An hour after this email is sent, the phone rings. This is the conversation between the chief's wife (CW) and the renter (PIC).
PIC: Hey, CW, what the fuck does this email mean about denial of service?!
CW: Well, as the email says, under state law, we are permitted to deny service to anyone for any reason. We are exercising that right due o your repeated negligence and recklessness with our property.
PIC: Okay, that's some fucking bullshit. I have always been a safe pilot. I wasn't reckless with shit!
CW: Well, I know that the flight that prompted this denial was illegal. You did not have enough fuel onboard to meet regulations. You landed without informing us of your delay and were over an hour overdue causing us to lose revenue. Plus, we had to find out that our aircraft was safe by contacting the FAA to report it. This is just the most recent example of your unacceptable behavior with our airplanes and we no longer want your business.
PIC: Okay, that flight plan was not illegal because of the fuel requirements. We landed because we didn't have enough fuel. As the pilot in command, I thought it a safe decision to divert and refuel. And I sent you a text when you asked where we were. I demand that you still provide me with rental service.
CW (after trying to wrap her head around his excuse): Uh, no, we are not going to allow you to rent from us again. If you want to rent planes, do it with someone else.
She thereafter hung up.
They've ben waiting for Mr. PIC to show up to carry on the complaint in person, but apparently it hasn't happened yet.
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