Patty Wagstaff returning to Airventure?

[RV8505]

Let's just call it what it was: "resisting arrest".



If you put yourself out in the public eye like she does and are held out as a role model to young women (or men for that matter since she has been a pilot with a level of skill I have sought to emulate my entire time in aviation), you should be held to a higher standard and likewise hold yourself to an even higher standard. That is just what I have always been taught.

Isn't there any forgiveness Javert ? Have pitty, as people make mistakes.

[danielfindling]

Isn't there any forgiveness Javert ? Have pitty, as people make mistakes.

Well said. Love the Les Miserables reference.

. . .


If I speak, I am condemned.
If I stay silent, I am damned!


Who am I? Who am I?
I am Jean Valjean

Now try getting the tune out of your head.

[steveinindy]

Isn't there any forgiveness Javert ? Have pitty, as people make mistakes.

There's a difference between making a mistake and making the conscious decision to do something you know is both a stupid idea and illegal. Let's look at it from an aviation perspective: Would we be so forgiving if she were a celebrity and a non-instrument rated pilot who took off into a dark night with low ceilings and icing conditions? No, we'd crucify her as an idiot. The fact that she didn't kill herself or someone else should not reduce the stupidity of the choice she made.

Now try getting the tune out of your head.

Thanks....it's stuck in my head now too. LOL

She didn't receive favorable treatment.

At the local level, you are correct. I am willing to bet if Sean Tucker (for example, not that I think Sean would) had been the one DUI'ing it down show center, I am willing to bet that he would kiss his low altitude aerobatics endorsement goodbye because he just demonstrated some incredibly poor judgment. He might get away with his pilot certificates but I think there would be a lot of scrutiny of whether the sort of person who will drink and drive is really the type of person you want making choices that could wipe out a crowd at an airshow with one moment of poor judgment.

By the way, yes, I am arguing that it was probably Patty's status as the top female airshow performer that saved her from losing her livelihood.

[Cary]

None of us is so perfect that we have the right to judge others, period. None of us was there, so we can only go by what was published here and there. At this point, though, it's in the past, and if Patty did everything she was required to do by the judge, it's way past time for the rest of us imperfect people to forgive--and that includes the EAA hierarchy and anyone else who has a say in whether she should return to OSH.

Cary

[Victor Bravo]

Let the first stone be cast by the pilot among us who has not done something really stupid. Whether it was stupidity due to alcohol, testosterone (guilty, Your Honor), or anything else.

Patty's incident had nothing to do with flying an aircraft. Where she was driving is immaterial; Oshkosh campers and airplane owners were no more or less of an "innocent public at risk" than a bus full of schoolchildren outside the Airventure grounds. In fact, you could even make a case for the airport property being a little "less public" than public roads. If it was a closed, non-operational runway or taxiway, and there were no pedestrians or campers in the immediate area, then it is even less of a hanging offense.

I'm guessing that she was given a few years off the Airventure schedule to contemplate her position as a role model for young people, and as a high profile performer representative of EAA. Like the guy who accidentally put jet fuel in Bob Hoover's P-51, I'll bet that Patty will become a poster child for safety and good judgement.

Besides, IMHO it would be a particularly humorous double standard for her to be excommunicated from the event, for driving around the Airventure grounds after having a drink or two.

Drunk driving is a no-no, and should be punished, and should be taken very seriously when you are putting other people's lives at risk.

[danielfindling]

It's official. Welcome back Patty Wagstaff to Oshkosh

[gbrasch]

From EAA:

April 4, 2013 - Patty Wagstaff, the three-time National Aerobatic Champion and National Aviation Hall of Fame member who was a popular fixture at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh for more than two decades, is returning to the EAA fly-in convention's air shows in 2013 flying new aircraft and performances. Wagstaff will fly several days in the afternoon air shows, presented by Rockwell Collins, during EAA AirVenture, which is July 29-August 4 at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh. "Patty is one of the most decorated aerobatic pilots in American history as well as a pioneer for women in the aerobatic community," said Jim DiMatteo, EAA's vice president of AirVenture features and attractions. "In addition to Patty's performances during the afternoon air show's all-star lineup, she will also be participating in warbird flying during our special female-pilot warbird flights on Thursday, August 1." Wagstaff spent the past several years flying firefighting aircraft in California, which greatly limited her air show training time and reduced her performance schedule. In 2013, she decided to return to the air show circuit where she had thrilled audiences throughout North America since the mid-1980s. This year at Oshkosh, Wagstaff will be flying the Embraer Mk. 2 Tucano, a light-attack and training aircraft. This former Royal Air Force trainer turboprop will fly a full aerobatic routine, believed to the first solo routine flown at a North American public air show. "I'm excited about returning to Oshkosh, because I really missed seeing all the wonderful people there and on the air show circuit," Wagstaff said. "Flying firefighting support was a tremendous experience for me over the past three years, but I'm really looking forward to flying the Tucano at Oshkosh, and maybe another airplane, too, so stay tuned." The air shows at EAA AirVenture are highly regarded by air show performers and audiences alike, as the world's top civilian aerobatic performers fly before fellow aviators and the most knowledgeable crowds on the air show circuit. While some Oshkosh air show performers have already been announced, the complete roster of pilots and aircraft will be announced as it is finalized. ---------------------------

[Lindberg]

Yep, she did a naughty thing a few years back. She paid for that. I'm sure she learned a lesson. I am glad to see her back. I missed her. Since 2008 something seemed missing. Many aviation greats have been big time drinkers in their heyday. Patty was naughty that day and she was arrested. This kind of thing happens when you mix alcohol with fame. Well, she paid her debt to society. Aerobatic pilot Patty Wagstaff appeared in a Wisconsin court Friday to face charges stemming from a July 31 incident at Wittman Regional Airport during last summer's AirVenture.

Here's the basic story:

Wagstaff, 57, pleaded no contest to first-offense drunken driving and a misdemeanor charge of resisting an officer. A related charge of refusing to submit to breathalyzer and blood-alcohol tests was dropped as part of a plea bargain.
Winnebago County Assistant District Attorney Adam Levin told the court that after her arrest, Wagstaff was verbally abusive to law enforcement, hospital and jail staff, using profanity, calling the officers "pigs" and saying they "did not know who they were dealing with."
"This was an unpleasant display of somebody thinking they were more special than others," Levin said, and recommended the court fine Wagstaff $1,300 and impose a nine-month suspension of her driving privileges.
Defense Attorney Michael Lim argued that allegations of abusive language and the police reports in general had been exaggerated. Lim requested the court set the fine at $225 with a six month license revocation, reported the Oshkosh Northwestern.
Winnebago County Circuit Court Judge Barbara Key sentenced Wagstaff to pay $500 in fines plus court costs, and revoked her driver's license for eight months. "This isn't something atypical that police have to deal with," Key said. "And I don't think the defendant should pay anything more because of who she is or anything less either."
As ANN reported, Wagstaff had the altercation at AirVenture 2008 while attempting to get back from the "Gathering of Eagles" dinner, en route to the nearby Hilton, using interior airport access. Wagstaff was reportedly among a group of at least three other persons, and apparently got off-kilter on the grounds of Wittman Field. Her vehicle got the rapt attention of Oshkosh airport/airshow security, and the situation went downhill from there.
Wagstaff freely admitted that she was "in the wrong place at the wrong time" and horribly embarrassed at what transpired. Security "busted" her for being in an unauthorized area on the airport grounds, and the matter escalated into an "uncomfortable" situation which required the attention of the Winnebago County Sheriff to resolve."

Welcome back Patty, and thank you EAA for bringing her back!

[Check 6]

Why are y'all beating a dead horse by bringing up her arrest again? Do y'all know she is a member here? Would any of you appreciate someone posting a similar story about y'all?

She is back, that is great, move on, please.

[Hal Bryan]

Well said, Check 6.

I'm excited to see Patty return, especially as she'll be flying the bigger, heavier Tucano, which I think we'll be a very interesting change from the Extra.