Harrison Ford avoids action over runway incident

LOS ANGELES: Hollywood star Harrison Ford is to avoid punishment over a near-miss at a California airport as he was piloting his private plane, his lawyer told AFP on Monday.

Ford, a seasoned pilot and vintage plane collector, was approaching John Wayne Airport in Orange County in February when he headed toward a taxiway rather than the runway, passing over a Boeing 737 with 110 passengers and six crew on board.

The 74-year-old “Indiana Jones” star was captured on air traffic control recordings released subsequently by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) calling himself a “schmuck,” and saying he had been distracted by two jets.

Ford’s lawyer Stephen Hofer, president of Santa Monica-based Aerlex Law Group, said in a statement the FAA had notified the actor that it had “closed its inquiry” into the Feb. 13 incident.

“The FAA conducted a full investigation into the matter, including an interview with Mr. Ford, and determined that no administrative or enforcement action was warranted,” Hofer told AFP.

“Mr. Ford retains his pilot’s certificate without restriction. In closing the matter, the agency acknowledged Mr. Ford’s long history of compliance with the federal aviation regulations and his cooperative attitude during the investigation.”

The FAA does not identify individual pilots and was not immediately available for comment, but was quoted by Variety magazine as confirming it had concluded its investigation.

The FAA said at the time of the incident that air traffic controllers had cleared “the pilot of a singleengine Aviat Husky” to land.