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At 9:16 p.m., on Saturday, April 21, 2018, the Manheim Township Police were dispatched to the Lancaster Airport at 500 Airport Road for a report of intoxicated persons who were attempting to fly an aircraft from the airport. The call originated from employees of a business at the airport. Officers responded to the airport and located Seth Osei Dapaah, M/41, of Upper Marlboro, MD, sitting in the pilot’s seat of a 1974 Piper Cherokee 180 fixed-wing single-engine aircraft. The engine of the aircraft was running. Two (2) other persons (passengers) were with Dapaah.
Officers instructed Dapaah to shut down the engine and exit the aircraft; he complied. In speaking with Dapaah, officers detected bloodshot and watery eyes, as well as a strong odor of alcoholic beverages emitting from his breath. A bottle of liquor was found inside the aircraft.
Dapaah was given a series of field coordination tests which he was unable to perform due to listen, comprehend, and follow instruction. Dapaah was arrested for Flying While Impaired and transported to the Manheim Township Police Department. The two (2) passengers were taken to an area hotel. Officers attempted to obtain a breath sample, to determine BAC, from Dapaah after he was notified of the penalties for refusal. Dapaah refused to provide a breath sample for the officers. He was then transported to Central Arraignment, where he was later released on $10,000 unsecured bail. The investigating officer later notified the Federal Aviation Administration and advised them of this incident. No crash occurred and no persons were injured as a result of this incident.
Flying While Impaired is a Misdemeanor 2 which may be enforced by any municipal police officer within their jurisdiction in this Commonwealth. The law states that any person who acts or attempts to act as flight crew of an aircraft in this Commonwealth, commits an offense if they are under the influence of alcohol, under the influence of a controlled substance which affects the individual’s faculties in any way contrary to safety, when the alcohol concentration in the individual’s blood or breath, as measured within two hours of the time of operation, or attempted operation, is 0.02% or more, while under the influence of any combination of a controlled substance and alcohol which affects the individual’s faculties in any way contrary to safety, or within eight hours after consumption of “liquor” or a “malt or brewed beverage” as defined in section 102 of the Liquor Code. A person who commits the offense of Flying While Impaired shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to all of the following:
– Pay a fine of not less than $1,000 nor more than $5,000
– Imprisonment for not less than 72 consecutive hours
– Undergo evaluation for substance abuse and, if the evaluation indicates substance abuse, to undergo treatment ordered by the court
A person who refuses to who refuses to submit to a test requested or required shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than $2,500 nor more than $5,000. A law enforcement officer investigating a violation of this law shall report to the Federal Aviation Administration the name of the individual and the results of the individual’s chemical test administered, including if the person refused.
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