Unlicensed Pilot Lands in Prison After Shannon Airport Joyride

Apr. 24—By STAFF REPORTS

ALEXANDRIA—A five-time previously convicted felon was sentenced Friday to 14 months in prison for flying an airplane without a pilot's license.

According to court documents, on Sept. 27, 2018, Ryan Guy Parker, 31, of Fredericksburg, took an airplane at Shannon Airport in Spotsylvania County for a joyride.

Parker, who named his business " Outlaw Aviation," was employed by the airplane's owner to assemble the plane but had not yet completed the job. At the time of the flight, the airplane had a caster rear wheel, a plastic bicycle water bottle for radiator overflow, and duct tape on key parts of the aircraft, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.

Despite poor weather conditions, Parker flew just above Shannon Airport's fuel tanks and twice crossed the airspace used by aircraft on approach to Shannon Airport's main runway. He flew around the airport for 10 to 15 minutes at an altitude of about 500 feet. Parker did not possess a pilot's license at the time of the flight, the release stated.

According to court documents, the defendant had five prior felony convictions, including a previous conviction involving unlawful activity pertaining to aircraft. In that case, the defendant was found guilty in the Stafford County Circuit Court for destruction of property and unauthorized use of a vehicle in connection with a separate September 2018 incident that occurred at the Stafford Regional Airport.

On Jan. 22, Parker pleaded guilty to serving as an airman without an airman's certificate.

Raj Parekh, acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; and Jamie Mazzone, mid- Atlantic region special agent-in-charge, U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge T. S. Ellis III.

___

(c)2021 The Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Va.)

Visit The Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Va.) at www.fredericksburg.com/flshome

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.