Use Of The Personal Pronoun In Advertising Deemed Deceptive

The nation's oldest air ambulance operators may be out as much as $30,000 for using the word "our" in advertising documents referring to a helicopter.

The chopper, which was purchased for the exclusive use of Mercy Flights of Oregon, actually is owned by a separate company BTS LLC., a company formed in 1998 by Brim Aviation, Timberland, and Siskiyou Transportation.

Mercy Flights began joint operations with Timberland in 1994 with its fixed-wing aircraft. After its creation, BTS bought the helo in 1998 for the exclusive use Mercy Flights.

But the U.S. DOT says that, because Mercy Flights does not actually OWN the helicopter, it can't refer to it as "our helicopter" in marketing materials. They claim the practice is deceptive, violates the law, and has slapped Mercy Flights with the $30,000 fine.

The Associated Press reports that Mercy Flights General Manager Ken Parson said that the nonprofit is the only company which uses the helicopter, and that it pays all the operating costs on the aircraft. But that's not good enough for the DOT.

It's not the first time the DOT has cast themselves in the role of grammar police. They fined Angel MedFlight Worldwide Air Ambulance Services of Scottsdale, AZ $10,000 for the use of a personal possessive pronoun in April 2009.

As to Mercy Flights, if they avoid the improper use of pronouns for a year, the fine will be reduced to $15,000.

Or $5,000 per letter.

FMI: www.dot.gov, www.mercyflights.com