Pilot flies into hotel bill storm
A BRITISH pilot on a roundthe-world flight has caused fury in Tokyo after insulting Japanese officials.
British Embassy staff had to ask Colin Hales, 46, to apologise for the “embarrassing” incident.
The adventurer, who has been grounded by the Japanese authorities since November, had demanded Japan pay his huge hotel bill.
The request, which he later claimed was a joke, was taken as a huge insult by officials, who complained to British diplomats.
The flyer has been at loggerheads with the Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau after being stranded by red tape. An Embassy source said: “Mr Hales seems to have failed to understand the psychology of the Japanese officials and caused real upset.
“They are a very polite people and his arrogance in making this suggestion, joking or otherwise, caused massive and real offence and he has now been told to cool it.
“After all, the Japanese aviation officials are trying to help him get his paperwork sorted out so he can be on his way after he got it wrong in the first place.
“It has all been very embarrassing.”
Mr Hales, an aircraft engineer from Staffordshire, is trying to fly the globe in the 14ft plane he built in his shed for £8,000.
He said his “humorous” antics had set him back at least a month.
He added: “My chances of getting the plane back this year are now pretty well non-existent.”