Ron Schenone

Is Having A Valid License Really Necessary To Fly A Plane? One Pilot Didn’t Think So

Posted by on Mar 4, 2010 | 8 Comments

This past week has been an eye opener when we first learned about children working as flight controllers and now there is this tid-bit of information that was just released. It seems that an airline pilot who is only being identified as a 41 year old Swede, has been flying 737 airplanes for the past 13 years without a proper license. But it gets better. To add to the mystery this man at one time did have a commercial license put he was never certified to fly passenger jets.

The man when arrested was in possession of a forged license that specified that he was good to go. LOL

Only one word I can think of. Unbelievable!

Comments welcome.

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  • Dick

    Absolutely not! You can either operate the equipment without dying or you can’t. However, SHOULD you have a license to operate an airplane? Yes. Especially if you are flying over my house.

    • http://wp3.lockergnome.com/nexus/blade/ Ron Schenone

      Hi Dick,
      Thanks for the chuckle.

  • james braselton

    hi there no you should not not every thing flying plain we have mollor 400 flying cars in the sky sold like 1,000 units for $400,000 and what about the space ports with flying ufo’s in the sky not every thing is a airplane what about hillicoptors too

  • Tinman

    You can fly without a license if it’s an ultralight, but not in most classes of airspace, like Class A & C. That is unless the FAA made changes since I was licensed in 1995….

  • http://www.tech-that.co.cc doggy

    I have started my flying and am only a teenager. I agree, Its like driving a car but a bit more complicated. If suddenly there were no certificates everyone would want to be a pilot as u get loads of money from it

  • Josh

    Yeah you could get loads of money for it. The bureaucracy of flying can be a bunch of crap. Lay offs and strikes and such.

    Of coarse you should have a valid license to fly. Also they should give random drug screening for pilots. I used to party with a pilot and you’d hate to hear the stuff he used to do the night before flying a hundred plus people around the country. Pilots are people though. Some just really suck.

  • KG

    Technically, no; a pilot license is not necessary to fly. Is it required? Absolutely, otherwise such licenses would not exist.

    Apparently it was not necessary for the pilot in question, since he flew for 13 years, ostensibly without accident or incident. I think that I could fly one in an emergency, considering that I fly these jets in MS Flight Simulator. While I know that it’s not quite the same, with help from someone on the ground, I’m reasonably confident that I could not only fly it, but probably land it.

    I’m also irritated about the coverage on the kids giving ATC directions. I’ve followed this story fairly extensively.

    For one thing, these kids were not “working” as air traffic controllers. The parent, who was the ATC, was letting them “direct traffic,” undoubtedly while sitting right there monitoring the situation closely, and ready to take control should he feel there might be any misunderstanding.

    Another consideration is that they were not directing air traffic; they were directing ground traffic. There was very little danger of collision of any aircraft, and if two aircraft did collide, passengers would have been in little danger. The ATCs control movement of traffic, but some common sense comes from the pilots, as well, and if they’re any kind of pilot at all, they are quite capable of keeping their aircraft out of any danger zones.

    A third consideration refers to “misunderstandings.” I heard the tapes of the kids giving traffic instructions. Their enunciation was impeccable; as a matter of fact, they were more understandable than most experienced ATCers. I understood every word they said, and apparently so did the pilots, who sounded quite amused.

    My final consideration brings us back to the start of this post. The kids were not “working” as ATCers. I’m sure the father didn’t say, “Take over for me here; I need to go to the bathroom and I’ll be right back.” I’m sure that everything was closely monitored for accuracy and the kids were told exactly what to say.

    At times I feel that there is just too much paranoia in today’s society. There are children that age that learn to fly planes, and part of flying is understanding ATC tower instructions and being able to understand and acknowledge those instructions. Being able to deliver those instructions (especially under supervision) is an inherent part of that.

    I think this story was just a “tempest in a teapot.” I would have been delighted to have been afforded that opportunity when I was that age, and it would have been a non-story at that time. I was afforded the opportunity to fly a plane then, while I was in CAP.