Billionaire Golfers and FAA Corruption

[Fear_of_Flying]

This is an older story that comes to mind as we head into the final day of the US Open Golf Championship. It bothered me at the time, but I don't think it was discussed particularly here or anywhere else that I ever saw. It was a story that quietly went away.

Right after the Tiger Woods sex scandal, someone hired a small airplane to tow one of those banners over the Masters Golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia. In this case, the banner taunted Tiger Woods, though I don't know what it said. Here's a brief account of the story:

http://www.golf.com/ap-news/faa-halt...r-woods-taunts

My understanding at the time was that the FAA actually raided the hangar where the small plane was stored and looked around until they could find some infraction to charge the company with. All they ended up finding was the defective seat belt.

My only real point here I guess is that it seems clear that many people were in damage control as Tiger Woods, a multi billion dollar industry, was in jeopardy. Apparently, they found complicity within the ranks of the FAA.

We spend a lot of time on this forum discussing issues that the FAA oversees, and I find it disconcerting that they were seemingly susceptible to some form of influence having nothing whatsoever to do with aviation safety.

If anyone has any additional information on this story, I'd like to hear about it.

[brianw999]

All I can add to this is that Tiger has reportedly now found out that a zipper works two ways !!

[guamainiac]

How about the one where the two FAA investigators went after the legendary Bob Hoover?

Lucky for him he got off because someone close by heard them discussing how in 40 years he never got cited once and they would "become legendary" for bringing him down. That is not the FAA but two renegade idiots.

[Deadstick]

It certainly had to do with the powerful members of Augusta National not wanting anything untoward being towed in the airspace above the course, but I would bet they would object to any banner towing during the tournament. And sure, they had the influence to get the local FAA to act to prevent it. Frankly, if I had the ability to attend the tournament, I wouldn't want the noise of a banner towing airplane disturbing the atmosphere.

[MCM]

It may not have had anything to do with the Tiger Woods camp at all. In fact I'd actively suggest it had nothing to do with them.

It could well have been the FAA not being happy with what was going on (overflight over a public gathering, obstructing the TV helicopters/airship). It may also have had something to do with the TV stations advertising rights, or just the intrusive noise.

The Seatbelt could well have been a cover story from either side - it is possible the banner tow was operating outside its permissions, but a seatbelt made a convenient reason for it to go.

A golf tournament takes 4 days - how long does it take to install a new seatbelt?

My bet is that it was suggested to the operator that banner towing in that location during a golf tournament might not be looked upon favourably.

[Deadstick]

Airships are not allowed at the Masters tournament.

[Fear_of_Flying]

Originally Posted by MCM

It may not have had anything to do with the Tiger Woods camp at all. In fact I'd actively suggest it had nothing to do with them.

It could well have been the FAA not being happy with what was going on (overflight over a public gathering, obstructing the TV helicopters/airship). It may also have had something to do with the TV stations advertising rights, or just the intrusive noise.

The Seatbelt could well have been a cover story from either side - it is possible the banner tow was operating outside its permissions, but a seatbelt made a convenient reason for it to go.

A golf tournament takes 4 days - how long does it take to install a new seatbelt?

My bet is that it was suggested to the operator that banner towing in that location during a golf tournament might not be looked upon favourably.

All of what you say seems reasonable, but I don't think the kind of money we're talking about with a strong Tiger Woods presence can be overstated, whether it's attendance at an event which spills over into the community, TV ratings, or what have you. You combine this fact with the apparent aggression that they went after this little company with, and I still entertain some skepticism as to how much safety was truly the issue, and how much of it was an effort to remove negative publicity. Probably we'll never know...