He's Just Not Gonna Take it Anymore

Greg Camalier of Boulder, CO had just had enough of living 400 feet from an airport, and all the noise that came with it.

So, he jumped a fence, ran onto the Boulder Municipal Airport(BDU) grounds, waved his arms, shouted and cursed at aircraft overhead, screaming he was going to "shut this airport down."

Camalier, 39, was rewarded for his outburst Thursday with a 12-month deferred sentence for trespassing on public property, according to the Associated Press.

A pilot who witnessed the incident, Scooter Mainero, said Camalier was shaking his fists and shouting at planes, to the point of causing one plane to abort a landing.

"At first I thought it was a flight instructor using hand maneuvers," he told the Boulder Daily Camera. "Once I realized what was going on, I was like, 'Whoa.'"

In exchange for Camalier's guilty plea to trespassing, prosecutors agreed to drop an obstruction charge. He'll stay out of jail as long as he doesn't do it again -- at least for the next 12 months.

Airport officials reported Camalier calling the airport at least twice before his incident to complain about noise, about a single helicopter in particular. He called airport manager Tim Head that evening prior to the incident and said, "Someone tell the helicopters to shut the (expletive) up."

The police report said he was able to get within 10-15 feet of a taxiing helicopter in the March 26 escapade, at one point getting within five feet of the rotor, according to a witness.

David Harrison, Camalier's attorney, said his client is "embarrassed" by the incident.

"Nothing similar will ever happen again," Harrison said.

FMI: Boulder Municipal Airport