Prosecutors Say He Nearly Hit A Delta Airlines Jet That Had Just Departed KDCA, But Facts May Prove Otherwise

When Douglas Hughes infamously flew his unregistered gyrocopter from Pennsylvania to a landing on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol last spring, he nearly collided with a Delta Airlines A320 that had just taken off from Washington Reagan National Airport (KDCA), prosecutors say.

NBC news reports that in a court document filed last Friday, prosecutors said that Hughes came within 1,400 feet of Delta Flight 1693. A slight changed in the flight path of either aircraft could have caused a "catastrophic" collision, they said.

The prosecution is making a case for a 10 month prison sentence for Hughes, who agreed to a plea deal for his stunt in November. He is to be sentenced April 13.

Attorneys for Hughes say he should not spend any more time in prison. He was in jail for one night after the flight, and has served five weeks of home confinement and has had his travel privileges revoked for over a year. He also had his aircraft confiscated. Hughes' attorneys say that no one was injured and no property was damaged as a result of the flight.

Attorney Mark Goldstone, an attorney representing Hughes, said he could not immediately comment on the near-collision with the Delta flight alleged by the government.

Gizmodo reports that, according to the Washington Post, Hughes says he did not come anywhere near the Delta flight, and that may be borne out by a testimony by former U.S. Capitol Police chief Kim Dine. Dine, who resigned just days before the incident occurred, said that the Delta flight took off about 25 minutes before Hughes landed. That would mean that the plane was well out of Capitol airspace before Hughes arrived.

(Image from file)

FMI: www.dcd.uscourts.gov