Experienced pilots wonder how a suspected thief managed to start a multi-million dollar helicopter and get it off the ground before crashing it at the Sacramento Executive Airport. “I was in disbelief,” said pilot Dan Oppenheim. “Even just getting a helicopter started is not an easy thing to do.”Oppenheim flies LiveCopter 3 all over Northern California and has been flying for 10 years as a helicopter pilot. “It’s not as simple as getting into a car and using a key fob or turning the key,” he said. “There’s no obvious button here that says push to start, it’s a lot more difficult.”Oppenheim is also a flight instructor.”When you watch a student try to fly one for the first time, they can’t hover,” Oppenheim said. “They can’t really control where it’s going.”Every aircraft has a start-up checklist with many steps. “You have to make sure everything is done in the appropriate sequence and make sure everything is done properly,” he said.Pilot Luke Szczygielski stores his Cessna aircraft at the Sacramento Executive Airport in a hangar and said he was glad nobody got hurt on Wednesday. Szczygielski wants to know why someone tried to steal a helicopter right off the ramp and how they did it. “He had enough knowledge to get the aircraft going and get it started, but maybe not enough practice to actually fly it,” he said. Some pilots have asked the county to beef up security at the airport, such as installing taller fences. The fences stand about five feet tall. Szczygielski thinks that wouldn’t make a difference.”A determined person will scale a much taller fence to steal an aircraft,” he said.The regional vice president of the California Pilot’s Association agrees. “Whether there is a four-foot fence or a ten-foot fence, if they are intent on attempting to take something it would be difficult to stop them,” said Doug Rice. Rice flies in and out of the Sacramento Executive Airport regularly. He said the smaller airports or general aviation airports educate the public and hopefully get people interested in aviation. There is less security at these airports than at the larger airports used by commercial airlines.”We want the public to come out and have a picnic by the airport or look at aircraft, bring their children to look at the aircraft,” Rice said. “We want pilots to have access to their aircraft, we don’t want them locked out.”Szczygielski said this incident won’t drive him away from the airport. “I feel pretty secure having my aircraft behind closed doors,” he said.Oppenheim said a student needs 40 hours minimum of flight time to obtain a helicopter pilot license. But he said realistically one should get 60-70 hours of flight experience.
Experienced pilots wonder how a suspected thief managed to start a multi-million dollar helicopter and get it off the ground before crashing it at the Sacramento Executive Airport.
“I was in disbelief,” said pilot Dan Oppenheim. “Even just getting a helicopter started is not an easy thing to do.”
Oppenheim flies LiveCopter 3 all over Northern California and has been flying for 10 years as a helicopter pilot.
“It’s not as simple as getting into a car and using a key fob or turning the key,” he said. “There’s no obvious button here that says push to start, it’s a lot more difficult.”
Oppenheim is also a flight instructor.
“When you watch a student try to fly one for the first time, they can’t hover,” Oppenheim said. “They can’t really control where it’s going.”
Every aircraft has a start-up checklist with many steps.
“You have to make sure everything is done in the appropriate sequence and make sure everything is done properly,” he said.
Pilot Luke Szczygielski stores his Cessna aircraft at the Sacramento Executive Airport in a hangar and said he was glad nobody got hurt on Wednesday.
Szczygielski wants to know why someone tried to steal a helicopter right off the ramp and how they did it.
“He had enough knowledge to get the aircraft going and get it started, but maybe not enough practice to actually fly it,” he said.
Some pilots have asked the county to beef up security at the airport, such as installing taller fences. The fences stand about five feet tall.
Szczygielski thinks that wouldn’t make a difference.
“A determined person will scale a much taller fence to steal an aircraft,” he said.
The regional vice president of the California Pilot’s Association agrees.
“Whether there is a four-foot fence or a ten-foot fence, if they are intent on attempting to take something it would be difficult to stop them,” said Doug Rice.
Rice flies in and out of the Sacramento Executive Airport regularly. He said the smaller airports or general aviation airports educate the public and hopefully get people interested in aviation. There is less security at these airports than at the larger airports used by commercial airlines.
“We want the public to come out and have a picnic by the airport or look at aircraft, bring their children to look at the aircraft,” Rice said. “We want pilots to have access to their aircraft, we don’t want them locked out.”
Szczygielski said this incident won’t drive him away from the airport.
“I feel pretty secure having my aircraft behind closed doors,” he said.
Oppenheim said a student needs 40 hours minimum of flight time to obtain a helicopter pilot license. But he said realistically one should get 60-70 hours of flight experience.
