King Air C90 E90
Flight Crew Flight Instructor; Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 90; Flight Crew Total 17500; Flight Crew Type 1000
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
General None Reported / Taken
Procedure; Airport; Human Factors
The other day I received a call from FSDO inspector. The call started with 'Hello Sir. Did you fly Aircraft X into ZZZ on [date]?' I replied yes I did. FSDO inspector asked if I had checked the NOTAMs for ZZZ before I took off. I replied that yes I had as I always do. I went to FlightPlan.com and did a multi-printout. I printed my flight plans; weather; NOTAMs; winds aloft matrix and if there was any bad weather nearby; the Weather Depiction Chart; and if there were any thunderstorms near my route I printed out the Radar Summary Chart. I also stated that I printed out the ZZZ airport information. FSDO inspector replied great; that he always did pretty much the same thing!FSDO inspector asked if I had noticed any NOTAMs for ZZZ concerning closed runways. I replied that yes; I had read NOTAMs about Runway 15L and Runway 17 being closed. I had consulted the airport information that I had printed out and made a mental note of the closed runways and decided that I would probably be using Runway 15R as it was open and the closest one to the FBO. FSDO inspector seemed impressed.FSDO inspector stated that he was just performing a preliminary investigation concerning a witness complaint of a possible violation concerning Aircraft X of which I was the pilot. It seems witness had filed a complaint with FSDO concerning Aircraft X landing on Runway 15C. The complaint stated that witness had watched Aircraft X land on Runway 15C. Aircraft X then proceeded to taxi around barricades; enter a closed taxiway; taxi back to Runway 15C without stopping at FBO; and then depart on Runway 15C. FSDO inspector stated that he was just collecting facts and was interested in determining what had happened and would I like to talk with him about this possible violation. I related to FSDO inspector that I had arrived in the vicinity of ZZZ on an IFR Flight Plan. Since the weather was clear VFR and it was a weekend so the Tower at this large joint civilian / military airport was closed. I cancelled IFR and as was my usual habit when approaching an airport I had programed the GPS for the RNAV (GPS) LPV approach to Runway 15R. I intercepted the final approach course about 5 miles out in VFR conditions and followed the LPV path to the Runway 15R threshold where I verified the runway markings showed it was indeed 15R. There were multiple parallel runways and taxiways so I wanted to be sure I was on the correct one. I then landed on Runway 15R. I had departed Runway 15R onto Taxiway G. I then proceeded onto parallel Taxiway D and Taxiway C to the FBO where I shutdown and discharged 5 passengers. I then started Aircraft X; retraced my path using Taxiways C and D and Taxiway G to Runway 15R where I departed VFR. I picked up my IFR clearance to ZZZ1 in the air right after takeoff.Since FSDO inspector had called the aircraft owner earlier to find out who the pilot was; and the aircraft owner had advised me that I might be receiving a call from the FSDO inspector concerning a possible violation; I was able to prepare a response in advance.I asked FSDO inspector if he had access to the Internet. He did. I asked him to go to www.flightaware.com and look for the flight in question of Aircraft X. He did. I asked him to enlarge the area of ZZZ and look at the track of Aircraft X recorded there as it approached. He did. I asked him what he saw. He stated that it appeared that the track of Aircraft X ended just short of Runway 15R as I had stated. I then asked him to look at the next flight of Aircraft X as it departed. He did. I asked him what he saw. He stated that it appeared track of Aircraft X started just past the end of Runway 15R and preceded toward ZZZ1. I said that appears to support my assertion that I did not use Runway 15C. He agreed; but added that Flight Aware is not a certified source of flight data and therefore was not official and cannot be used to substantiate my claim.I told FSDO inspector that I had been flying for 40 plus years.I have almost 18;000 hours of experience. I do not have any history of any violations; accidents; or incidents. I certainly can recognize an X on the end of a runway denoting that it is closed; and I did not see an X on the end of Runway 15R when I crossed the threshold and landed.FSDO inspector said he had already checked my history and it was indeed perfectly clean. He also stated that he had checked with the maintenance personnel at ZZZ and they had stated that they had not placed an X on the end of all closed runways on that day. They had been told that filing the NOTAM was all they needed to do. We both agreed that this was not the best practice nor was it proper as a pilot will not be aware of a NOTAM that is filed after he checks the NOTAMS prior to departure. An X on the end of a closed runway is the best way to depict a closed runway and assure that no one will try to use it while it is closed.I also told FSDO inspector that I am an honest person. If I had indeed made a mistake I would certainly admit it. I would be open to discuss how to avoid such mistakes in the future. I would also be willing to accept whatever retraining or counseling he might require as the result of my mistake. I also stated that if I had been aware of a mistake on my part I would have already filed a report which would provide me some protection for an unintentional mistake in case of an enforcement action; FSDO inspector encouraged me to file a report anyway concerning this matter. We ended the conversation with the FSDO inspector stating that he had already written a letter and he was about to send it to me. But now he was not sure. He stated that I had presented some very compelling evidence that I had not done anything wrong; and in fact it appeared to him I had done everything right. He also stated that my version of what I did was very different from the complaint that he had received. In fact; the only information in the complaint that appeared to agree with my version was the registration number of AIRCRAFT X. However; if I did receive his letter I could ignore it if I wanted to. I told him that if he sent me a letter; I would have to respond to it with my side of the story. He re-stated that he was not sure if he would even send the letter now.That night I was thinking about the day's events when I remembered that the application ForeFlight that I use on my iPad for navigation and charts recorded a Flight Track Log. I turned on my iPad and sure enough there was the flight log for that flight. I enlarged the depiction of the flight in the area of ZZZ. It showed a very straight track directly to the threshold of Runway 15R. The track also recorded my roll out down the center of Runway 15R; my exit onto Taxiway G; my taxi on parallel Taxiways D and C to FBO; my return to Runway 15R; and my departure down the center of Runway 15R. I took a couple of screen shots of the track depiction.The next morning I contacted FSDO inspector. I explained what was depicted screen shots and I asked FSDO inspector to call me when he had a chance as I had another matter to discuss with him.After a while I received a call from FSDO inspector. He stated that the screen shots were certainly interesting and that they depicted exactly what I had described as my actions during the flight in question. He also stated that while the screen shots looked very accurate; they were not a certified source of flight data and could not be used officially. He stated that while it might be possible to create a false image; he did not believe I had done so. He stated that he was going to request the official ATC tracks for the flights in question. If the official ATC tracks showed the same track as I had given him it would certainly mean I had done nothing wrong. In any event; he did allow as how he was inclined to close this matter in my favor as I had provided substantially more relevant information than the witness had and unless the witness had photos or other substantial information; or the official ATC tracks differed from what he was seeing in ForeFlight I would not be contacted anymore and I could consider the matter closed with no action to be taken.I assured FSDO inspector that I am keenly aware that making false statements or reports to the FAA could result in revocation of all my pilot certificates; a 5 year prison sentence and a $10;000 fine. For that reason I assured him I am always very careful what I put on a certificate application; medical application; or what I say to the FAA. I do not want to lose my pilot certificates; spend time in prison; or pay a large fine. With the alleged violation apparently being resolved; I reminded him that I had another matter to discuss.The additional matter was this: While mulling over this matter I had become very angry. I was angry at the witness. I realized that an unknown person who can remain anonymous; the witness; had filed a substantially false report and complaint against me. None of the facts the witness had reported appeared to be true.Now let's suppose for a moment the FlightAware track had ended several miles from the end of the runway making it impossible to tell exactly which of the several parallel runways I might have actually used. Let's also assume ForeFlight had not recorded an accurate track for the flight; or had not recorded one at all for some reason. Let's also assume the witness is a highly respected and credible individual. Let's also assume while FSDO inspector may be inclined to believe me and conclude I did nothing wrong; his supervisor or other superior may not agree. Let's assume the supervisor decides he is tired of these general aviation pilots ignoring and violating the rules and then lying in an attempt to get out of any punishment. Let's assume the supervisor wants to make an example of me for all to see what can happen if a pilot does not comply and tries to lie his way out of it. Now we have a he said; she said situation with no substantial independent proof. Who is one supposed to believe? Who will prevail in this situation? I am a professional pilot. I use my pilot certificates as my source of income. It could cost me tens of thousands of dollars to defend myself against this alleged violation and go through the appeal process. There is no guarantee that I will prevail. There is a great possibility that I might lose the fight and my pilot certificates will be suspended for an extended period of time and or revoked. Without my pilot certificates I cannot work. If my savings are depleted defending myself I will not have any money to live on. My life as I know it could be ruined. All because I was falsely accused and could not prove I did absolutely nothing wrong!I asked FSDO inspector if he would please impress upon witness that making such false statements; as he apparently did to the FAA in this matter; could result in a prison sentence for him and a large fine. Remind witness that in the future such statements should not be made without careful attention to the details and facts. I also asked FSDO inspector if he could convey to witness that false statements could result in the destruction of an innocent person's life and career forever. FSDO inspector did not believe that he would be able to do what I asked. An X on the end of a runway should be definitive as far as a runway closure. The filing of a NOTAM is another way of advising pilots of a runway closure in advance of arrival; but a pilot is not going to read NOTAMs on short final. The pilot will be looking at the end of the runway on short final. If he sees an X; he will learn the runway is closed and he should not use it. Imagine the situation of a fouled runway. Maybe a large hole develops in the runway surface and that hole would be dangerous for aircraft landing. Airport maintenance can place an X on the end of the runway and prevent aircraft from using the runway much quicker than filing a NOTAM. A
Captain reported FAA contacted him with a complaint of landing and departing from a closed runway. Captain presented evidence to the contrary.