FAA Shoots Down Spitfire | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-07.07.25

Airborne-NextGen-07.08.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.09.25

Airborne-AffordableFlyers-06.26.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.27.25

Sat, Dec 05, 2009

FAA Shoots Down Spitfire

FAA Proposes $4 Million Civil Penalty for Spitfire Aviation Services

The dear old FAA has set its sights on a charter operation that seems to have been flying a mite outside the regs. The FAA has proposed a $4 million civil penalty for Spitfire Aviation Services, LLC, of Fayetteville, Ark., for numerous violations of the FARs.

The alleged violations include conducting at least 798 passenger-carrying revenue flights between November 2005 and October 2007, even though Spitfire held no air carrier certificate or the appropriate operations specifications required under federal regulations for charter operators. Inspectors also found that 262 of those flights were conducted by a pilot who did not hold an Air Transport Pilot Certificate with the appropriate type rating for the aircraft being flown.

Spitfire had no FAA-approved pilot training and testing program in place, nor the approved maintenance program or drug testing and alcohol misuse prevention programs required by the government. During its investigation, the FAA determined that Spitfire operated three aircraft, including a Cessna CE-550 Citation, a Beechcraft BE-20 and a Beechcraft BE-36, on charter flights primarily in the central and southern United States. The FAA became aware of the violations through a complaint from a competitor.

During the time it was operating in violation of regulations, Spitfire experienced a crash that destroyed the BE-36 and resulted in the death of the pilot. The three passengers on that flight survived the accident.

Spitfire Aviation Services has 30 days from the receipt of the civil penalty letter to respond to the FAA.

FMI: www.faa.gov

Advertisement

More News

KidVenture Educational Activities Lineup At EAA AirVenture 2025

Youth Explore With Hands-On Builds, RC Airplanes, Flight Sims, Much More KidVenture is located just north of the EAA Aviation Museum, at Pioneer Airport, and has arranged a myriad >[...]

Aero-News: Quote of the Day (07.07.25)

“About nine decades ago, Amelia Earhart was recruited to Purdue, and the university president later worked with her to prepare an aircraft for her historic flight around the >[...]

Airborne 07.07.25: Sully v Bedford, RAF Vandalism, Discovery Moving?

Also: New Amelia Search, B737 Flap Falls Off, SUN ‘n FUN Unveiling, F-16 Record Captain Sully Sullenberger, the pilot who saved 155 people by safely landing an A320 in the Hu>[...]

Aero-News: Quote of the Day (07.08.25)

"It is critically important for North American flight safety that Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) violations are avoided. All pilots must familiarize themselves with updates to >[...]

Airborne-NextGen 07.08.25: Joby in Dubai, Army Electra, Archer iin Abu Dhabi

Also: Hackers v Aviation, Discovery Moving?, Gogo Galileo HDX, EVE to Costa Rica Joby Aviation announced its electric air taxi successfully completed a series of VTOL wingborne tri>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC