Aircraft Eventually Came Down At McCarran International Airport

A tourist from California has been fined $20,000 after his drone got away from him and eventually wound up at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas.

Television station KVVU reports that the drone operator, Reuben Burciaga, said he was trying to get a photograph of the High Roller observation wheel at the Linq hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip. He was apparently not authorized to fly the aircraft in the area.

Burciaga said that during the flight, his aircraft "started acting weird and took off". It flew more than two miles at an altitude of more than 450 feet before finally landing a few feet away from an active runway at McCarran. Workers found the drone and handed it over to local authorities, who tracked it back to Burciaga through its registration number.

The FAA initially fined Burciaga $15,000. "This was really a very serious incident, which is why we imposed such a large fine," said FAA Spokesperson Ian Gregor. "In this situation, the pilot committed a litany of serious violations and really flew the drone carelessly and recklessly.”

Burciaga did not pay the fine, and it was upped to $20,000. The fine was turned over to the Treasury Department, which will try to collect the money through his income taxes.

Burciaga admits to the infraction, but says he does not have the money to pay the fine, or fight the charge. "I wouldn't even have an idea how to fight it. That's half my year's paycheck for trying to take a picture," he said.

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report