Grand Teton National Park law enforcement rangers received a report that a helicopter had illegally landed at Moran Bay on the west shore of Jackson Lake, inside Grand Teton National Park.Photo:NPS Photo
NPS Photo
A Colorado pilot is facing charges after landing a helicopter inside Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park last month, according to authorities.
Peter Smith, of Gunnison, was charged with two violations for making an allegedly illegal landing at Moran Bay at Jackson Lake in Grand Teton National Park on June 24, according to astatementfrom the National Park Service.
Officials say that park rangers found Smith and a companion “having a snack” along Jackson Lake.
However, Smith told theAssociated Pressthat bad weather was to blame and claimed the landing was within FAA regulations. “We were trying to cross over the Tetons and we couldn’t, so we landed,” he told the news agency. “We were not having a picnic. We were landing.”
Unauthorized helicopter landings are “prohibited” inside Grand Teton National Park “to protect wildlife and other natural resources and preserve the visitor experience,” the National Park Service said in their statement.
Speaking withCowboy State Daily, Smith also claimed that he had a sick passenger on board.
“We had a sick passenger and there was bad weather in the Tetons so we couldn’t cross the Tetons,” Smith told the outlet, alleging that he did not know he had landed within the boundaries of the park.
Smith told the outlet that he and his companion had been on the ground for “no less than 10 minutes” before the United States Forest Service arrived and issued them a ticket.
Smith owns an air tour company called West Elk Air, per the reports. PEOPLE was unable to access West Elk Air’s website on Wednesday, and the company’sInstagram accountwas private at the time of publication.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Smith has been charged with illegally operating an aircraft on specifically-designated lands or waters and failing to use an aircraft in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations. The Colorado man now faces up to a $5,000 fine and or six months in jail for each of the two Class B misdemeanors, according to the park service.
The pilot is expected to appear in a Jackson federal court in August.
source: people.com
