FLYING WITHOUT LICENSE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18277, 19 December 1922, Page 9

FLYING WITHOUT LICENSE.

AN AIRMAN FINED £40.

PROSECUTION IN ENGLAND.

At Croydon County Polico Court Thoma 3 Bs.den Powell, aged 22 years, was summoned for flying on August 20 from Croydon to Penshurst without a pilot's license, and also for Hying in an unregistered machine, says a London paper. Tho defendant pleaded guilty. Mr. W. Paling, for the Treasury, said the machine wag an Avro originally registered by the Eastbourne Aviation Company. Tho certificate expired on August 6, 1921, and had not been.renewed. Last March the defendant applied for a registration certificate for tho machine, and returned- the required forms duly filled in. Ho failed, however, to enclose tho fee of ©no guinea, and no registration ,took place. Tho defendant applied also for a private pilot's license, and was informed that a condition would bo the production of tho Royal Aero Club's certificate of competency. Some months afterwards, as no certificate had been received, tho Air Ministry warned him that it would be an offenco to fly without a license. On August 20 he flew from Croydon to Penshurst, and his machine crashed on arrival. The defendant told the Bench that he had flown about 12 times between Pens hurst and Croydon, and had not been stopped by anyone. "I do not know anything about the rules whatever." he added. The defendant also said he had been flying for about 14 months at Pensburst, and had taken up a passenger eneo or twice. The chairman. Sir Arthur bpur<-eon, said the magistrates were much concerned about these revelations, because they seemed to indicate that the regulations would require a good deal of overhauling. Mr. Paling said he would convey that opinion to tho Air Ministry. The chairman remarked that if the defendant had taken a passenger to Pensburst that day, according to the evidence, no objection would have been raised when he started. Defendant was told that he was liable to fines totalling £400, but that the Bench would take a lenient view and he would be fined £20 in each case. The chairman added that any further case of the kind would be treated drastically.