This is part of a blurb in today's Aero-News Net. Note the last three lines:

Aero-News reported on Mallette before, although at the time no one knew him by name. Last October, reports came in from Missoula (MT) police that an unidentified P-51 Mustang buzzed the crowd and tailgaters just before a football game between Montana and Cal Poly at Washington-Grizzly Stadium.

The Missoulian newspaper reports eyewitness accounts identified the aircraft as belonging to Eugene Mallette. Earlier this month, the FAA sent Mallette notice that his ticket could be pulled for 360 days based on a January 4 ruling by the Northwest Mountain Region office of the FAA, based in Renton, WA.

In its ruling, the FAA noted Mallette flew his warbird "over a congested area... below 1,000 feet of objects on the ground... including, or in the vicinity of, a stadium which is part of the University of Montana."

Most damningly, the FAA also claimed Mallette's plane (file photo of type, below right) was traveling at speeds greater than 230 mph below 2,500 feet within four nautical miles of a primary airport -- and that his actions were "careless or reckless, endangering the lives and property of others."

Cool to watch, and no doubt a lot of fun to fly... but also a really bad idea if you want to keep your ticket.

What's worse, the FAA ruling also states Mallette pulled the same stunt three months before, over St. Cloud, MN. The ruling alleges Mallette failed to establish communications with the airport tower in that incident -- and that he then proceeded to execute "an unsafe low and fast pass" between the tower and a taxiway "at a low altitude and at a rate of speed higher than was prudent."


In all, the Missoulian reports Mallette appears to have violated six FAA regs between the two incidents.

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