Pilot Lands In Big Trouble After Dropping Flour On Friends

An Arizona man with access to an airplane and the ability to fly it is in a whole lot of trouble this week, after he decided to play a joke on some friends who were in a paintball gun competition in the Tonto National Forest, according to authorities. Because of that prank, the forest was evacuated in the midst of what rangers thought might have been a chemical or biological attack.

In fact, it was a prank involving several sacks of flour, according to authorities.

The unidentified pilot flew over the Needle Rock Recreation Area near the Verdes River, dropping several sacks of flour on his friends as a joke, according to authorities. But park officials who saw the drop weren't sure. They thought it might have been some sort of terror attack. Without knowing more, they evacuated hundreds of people from the park.

It was three hours later when the paintball warriors, wise to the prank, explained to rangers what had happened. After the evacuation, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Department obtained samples of the flour and had it tested for dangerous substances.

The tests came up negative.

Trying to put the best face on a heart-wrenching situation, Sheriff's Deputy Travis Anglin told the East Valley Tribune in Scottsdale, AZ, "It was kind of a dress rehearsal for terrorist activities."

The pilot, whose identity has not yet been released, apparently took off from Deer Valley Airport in northern Phoenix, according to Anglin. He could end up facing some pretty serious charges, including flying too low and dropping substances from an aircraft.

FMI: www.fs.fed.us/r3/tonto