Legal rights when landing on private property (USA)

There was a discussion about this last year, and I'm sure it comes up
regularly, but I'd like to get some feedback from pilots with both
legal and practical experience regarding one's rights (if any) upon
making an emergency landing on private property in the USA.

My aroused curiosity stems from this quote from an FAA contact
regarding private airports on FAA sectionals: "Please note that private
use airports in the FAA's National Airspace System are for the use of
the owner only or with the permission of the owner only. Other users
are not authorized and should not be attempting to land at private use
airports." This made me wonder why the FAA even puts them on their
charts at all, and why they often remain there long after the "airport"
has turned into a landfill or housing development. But I digress ...

If I make an emergency landing on private property (regardless of
whether it's an airport), does the owner have the legal right to detain
me? I seem to recall in a previous discussion a reference to something
like a "safe harbor" law that permits persons, such as lost hikers, to
take refuge in private property in order to escape danger (bad weather,
etc), and that this law has been applied to aviators who had to put
down somewhere. If this is true, I'd like to learn the details, should
I ever end up in such a predicament...

TW

I am not a lawyer or the police, but I remember reading a similar article,
maybe in the SSA Magazine.

I believe you are correct about the "Safe harbor" law... you are either
going to land safely on their runway or hayfield.. or crash land somewhere
else and risk personal injury.

I do not believe he can detain you.. If he detains you.. he can be charged
with false imprisonment. He can call the constabulary and request a charge
of trespass be made.. that charge may not hold up in court.

He can reasonably expect that costs will be covered for damaged crops caused
by landing or retrieving the glider, or damage to a fence that may have been
cut be properly repaired. If he demands to keep the glider as collateral for
damages, then he assumes all responsibility for your $100,000 glider in
event it is damaged while in his care. Politely inform him of that and ask
if he is willing to sign a receipt for your $100,000 glider, on his possible
$2000 crop damage.

You do not have to leave him your trailer to keep your glider in nor the
support or tie down. He needs to make room in his barn/garage/shed to
reasonably care for your glider as you would. Granted, the prudent owner
would want his glider in the glider box.

If he does chose to detain you or try to prevent you from retrieving your
glider to keep it safe, then you should call for the local constabulary.
Remember, barn animals: horses, cows, steers, sheep tend to like white
fiberglass gliders. Any time he prevents you from sheltering your equipment,
he assumes responsibility for safe keeping of same.

Many pilots carry an extra chain lock in their trailer, so if a gate chain
needs to be cut to get a glider out of a field, cut a chain link, not the
lock, and put your new lock in the chain. The chain now has two locks, one
the owner can open. If you are able to contact the owner, send them the key,
and offer to replace the chain.

As for old closed runways that are no longer serviceable still on charts ..
until someone tells the FAA chart makers that the runway is gone.. it stays
on the charts. Some runways, even private ones, are there for "navigational
purposes", especially in remote areas where the runway is the only major man
made landmark.

Lets both do a search in SSA and "Google" and see what we can come up with.

BT

"2NO" wrote in message
ps.com...
There was a discussion about this last year, and I'm sure it comes up
regularly, but I'd like to get some feedback from pilots with both
legal and practical experience regarding one's rights (if any) upon
making an emergency landing on private property in the USA.

My aroused curiosity stems from this quote from an FAA contact
regarding private airports on FAA sectionals: "Please note that private
use airports in the FAA's National Airspace System are for the use of
the owner only or with the permission of the owner only. Other users
are not authorized and should not be attempting to land at private use
airports." This made me wonder why the FAA even puts them on their
charts at all, and why they often remain there long after the "airport"
has turned into a landfill or housing development. But I digress ...

If I make an emergency landing on private property (regardless of
whether it's an airport), does the owner have the legal right to detain
me? I seem to recall in a previous discussion a reference to something
like a "safe harbor" law that permits persons, such as lost hikers, to
take refuge in private property in order to escape danger (bad weather,
etc), and that this law has been applied to aviators who had to put
down somewhere. If this is true, I'd like to learn the details, should
I ever end up in such a predicament...

TW

In article mDWde.9774$fI.2464@fed1read05,
"BTIZ" wrote:

I do not believe he can detain you.. If he detains you.. he can be charged
with false imprisonment. He can call the constabulary and request a charge
of trespass be made.. that charge may not hold up in court.

I don't know about the US, but in Commonwealth countries you aren't
traspassing until you've been asked to leave and have failed to do so.

--
Bruce | 41.1670S | \ spoken | -+-
Hoult | 174.8263E | /\ here. | ----------O----------

BT did a pretty good job for not being a lawyer. I have been a lawyer for
35 years and frankly the question rarely comes up.

In an emergency, you can land anywhere you need to land, period. However,
if you land in a military installation, you may regret it, because of paper
work. I would not land in a prison yard, either.

It gets more complicated. If you chose to land in a game refuge, for
example, that might be construed to be violating the FAR and there might
possibly be some sort of citation issued for flying over the area (since you
landed in the area, you were therefore not at a safe height or distance
away).

If you are intoxicated, there also might be a problem.

But, let us say you landed in an open farm field. Neither the owner of the
property or anyone else has the right to detain you. That would be false
imprisonment and you would have a claim for damages. The claim might buy
you a new airplane.

Each state may have various laws that apply. Generally, the owner of the
property would not have a right to detain the aircraft, but he may have a
right to keep you from trespassing to get it. Rarely will that happen.
And, if he is aware of some liability that he may be facing, then he is less
likely to be a jerk.

Your liability insurance carrier would be the immediate telephone call, as
they would assist in retrieving the aircraft.

Years ago a large Canadian 4 engine jet used an abandoned airfield to make a
successful landing after it ran out of fuel. Look up "Gimli Glider" for a
marvelous story. That may be one reason why the abandoned airfields are
still on the charts - because they are useful in emergencies.

Glider pilots land often in the puckerbrush and rarely have a problem. Most
of the time the farmer is excited to have a visitor from the sky - unless
the visitor is a jerk.

Colin

It gets more complicated. If you chose to land in a game refuge, for
example, that might be construed to be violating the FAR and there might
possibly be some sort of citation issued for flying over the area (since
you
landed in the area, you were therefore not at a safe height or distance
away).


There was a thread or article at one time.. of Game Wardens in Jackson
Wyoming ticketing hang gliders for landing within the park.. or reserve.
Soaring from Driggs Idaho, Glider pilots have been cautioned not to get
caught on the wrong side of the Grand Tetons and have to land in the park..
unless you can make the runway at Jackson Hole..

BT

In article et,
"COLIN LAMB" wrote:

Years ago a large Canadian 4 engine jet used an abandoned airfield to make a
successful landing after it ran out of fuel. Look up "Gimli Glider" for a
marvelous story.

That would be a twin engine jet :-)

--
Bruce | 41.1670S | \ spoken | -+-
Hoult | 174.8263E | /\ here. | ----------O----------

Glider pilots land often in the puckerbrush and rarely have a problem.
Most
of the time the farmer is excited to have a visitor from the sky - unless
the visitor is a jerk.

In the UK in my time (some years ago now) whenever I landed in a farmer's
field I always offered the farmer a free ride in a two-seater if he cared to
turn up at our Club. I have been royally entertained by farmer's wives all
over England. Once I even got invited to a birthday party that was going on
in the house next my landing field. I wasn't intoxicated when I landed, but
I sure was by the time the retrieve arrived! Twice the farmer who turned up
for his free ride actually joined the club and went on to solo!!

I reckon it would have to be a pretty dour individual who was not impressed
by having a glider land on his property.

The point about military fields is worth noting. In the 1972 Nationals
someone landed at an American Airforce field and we had a hell of a job
getting him and his glider out of there. He missed the comp next day.

Alistair Wright
ex Staffs, Coventry, Essex and London GC.

At 11:30 04 May 2005, Bruce Hoult wrote:
In article ,
'COLIN LAMB' wrote:

Years ago a large Canadian 4 engine jet used an abandoned
airfield to make a
successful landing after it ran out of fuel. Look
up 'Gimli Glider' for a
marvelous story.

That would be a twin engine jet :-)

--
Bruce | 41.1670S | \ spoken | -+-
Hoult | 174.8263E | /\ here. | ----------O----------

Erm, well, at the time it was a no engine glider
Sorry, couldn't resist.

There was another similar incident in 2001 where a
transatlantic flight ended up doing a 100k final glide
into a small island.

"COLIN LAMB" wrote in message
nk.net...
BT did a pretty good job for not being a lawyer. I have been a lawyer for
35 years and frankly the question rarely comes up.

In an emergency, you can land anywhere you need to land, period. However,
if you land in a military installation, you may regret it, because of
paper
work. I would not land in a prison yard, either.



Reminds me of an incident that happened last year. Following Allen Pratt's
fatal crash of his Carat MG just north of Minden, several parts, including
the canopy/frame and ailerons were not located in the wreckage or debris
field after the glider broke up in the air. The debris field was more than a
mile in length and included pasture land, the Nevada Correctional facility
and sagebrush covered mountains.

After talking with the NTSB, a friend and I did low and high altitude grid
searches to locate parts with my Aeronca Champ, being very mindful of the
FAA regs on separation from people and structures. We did not over-fly the
prison, figuring that any debris that fell there would have been quickly
discovered . . . but we did fly close (g). The prison went ballistic, even
did a prisoner lock-down, if they had surface to air missiles, we'd have
been toast! They filed a report with the FAA saying we over-flew their south
tower at 300 feet.

I'd managed to erase my GPS trace before I knew of the complaint, so that
was of no help. Fortunately, the FAA investigator believed me and there was
no prove (pictures w/ground reference etc.) to substantiate the complaint.
So I got off . . . but I was worried.

So now, I would recommend calling a prison ahead of time, even if planning
on flying close to them. Those guys are paranoid. That prison is now on my
personal Area 51 list.

all the best,

bumper

On Wed, 4 May 2005 07:43:07 -0700, bumper wrote:

"COLIN LAMB" wrote in message
nk.net...
BT did a pretty good job for not being a lawyer. I have been a lawyer for
35 years and frankly the question rarely comes up.

In an emergency, you can land anywhere you need to land, period. However,
if you land in a military installation, you may regret it, because of
paper
work. I would not land in a prison yard, either.

I've heard that if you land in an indian reservation, they will walk up and
ask you what you are doing sitting in their airplane.