Here is the account from Clay Phillips:

I just read your article regarding Gabriel Silverstein and the treatment he experienced.  A month or so ago I was flying my Cessna 180 [small single-engine plane] home from Salt Lake City.  Other than the fact that it was a very windy day it was a normal VFR flight. 

I filed a flight plan and activated it, and shortly after takeoff I also requested and received VFR flight following from Salt Lake Departure, but was dropped shortly after flying over the mountains because I couldn't fly high enough for the radar to "see" me.  Center ["Center" controllers are part of the air-traffic control system, along with "approach" and "departure" controllers near larger airports and "tower" controllers at those airports] suggested that I could pick up flight following again once I was closer to Moab, UT.  I elected not to pick up flight following again for the remainder of the flight (perfectly legal). 

When I landed at my home base in Moriarty, NM I was met by the owner/operator of the local FBO [Fixed Base Operator, essentially the managers of small airports] who said that about 15 minutes before I touched down he received a call from Homeland Security and that they wanted him to go find me and ask whether my plane was properly registered.  This is Homeland Security, mind you, not the FAA. 

I was bewildered why Homeland Security would have any interest in me.  I avoided restricted airspace and did not violate any temporary flight restrictions.  I did absolutely nothing wrong, plus my plane is legal in every respect including current registration.  Clearly, the FAA brought me and my flight to the attention of Homeland security.  I called AOPA legal services [Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association] the next day to ask what I should do.  They said I shouldn't do anything and that they had never heard of such a thing.

 

I'm a retired US Navy officer, have held security clearances during my entire time in the Navy, and now into my second career as an engineer for a defense contractor, and am one of the most law-abiding citizens in this country and yet something I did, or didn't do attracted this jack-boot fascist attention from our out-of-control government.  I hope others like me can tell their story to show that Mr. Silverstein was not an "outlier data point".  This is now the new-normal unless the public forces our representatives to do something about it.

Larry Gaines, a small-plane pilot from California who had a similar episode last year. The story is long and detailed, and will be riveting for those in the aviation world. The summary for general readers is this.

The whole episode lasted about 2 hours.  While the officers who questioned me were not overtly or personally threatening, the situation was intimidating and threatening.  I was never told details of the "profile", so I don't know how to prevent this from happening again, aside from talking to federal employees at all times while flying.  I am concerned that DEA and DHS now have files on me.  This distresses me GREATLY.  I am equally concerned that my plane's tail number is now suspicious in the eyes of law enforcement....

 

[He adds this caveat in a follow up note:] Although my adrenaline gets going when I think about this whole mess, and I can read the US Constitution, I have ENORMOUS respect for the rule of law and for the men and women who put their asses in harm's way to help assure my safety.  That includes local, state, & federal law enforcement agents, as well as our military.  The people who should answer for this crap are the cowardly bureaucrats who sent all those men, vehicles, airplanes, dogs, and guns out there - not the men dispatched to the scene.

Fresh reports of aircraft searches by CBP

Pilots understand the need for regulation to conduct themselves to safely fly aircraft.  Pilots also agree that those who circumvent the legal aspect of flying properly and or conducting themselves inappropriately should be scrutinized.

When pilots who are United States citizens are subjected to searches and seizure of themselves or property without provocation or cause as in CBP seizing private aircraft then this country becomes a dictatorial third world country.  It is not anymore the land of the free and the brave.

Professional member organizations are attempting to communicate and understand what the government is attempting to accomplish when pointing AR-15 type rifles at their members prior to departures and upon landing at destination airports.

Fresh reports from pilots subjected to ramp checks and aircraft searches suggest a pattern, though federal officials remain, essentially, moot on the details.

AOPA coverage of New York pilot Gabriel Silversteins recent experience;the real estate investment banker who was stopped and searched twice by CBP officers on a cross-country trip in a Cirrus drew about half a dozen new reports from other pilots who had similar experiences, and dozens of comments from others concerned about the possible violation of constitutional rights.

The new reports follow a pattern similar to Silversteins experience: CBP agents approach pilots, request aviation paperwork, and conduct an extensive search of the aircraft, often including removal of all contents. Agents have declined to provide identification, and the reason for these searches (which uncover no evidence of contraband or other wrongdoing) is unclear.

The Atlantic published additional accounts from law-abiding pilots detained in similar fashion. Among those responding to a request for reports by AOPA was an FBO operator who said he has been asked by federal agents on half a dozen occasions to investigate arriving aircraft for drug smuggling (a step that the FBO operator is reluctant to take).

AOPA legal and aviation security staff continue to investigate the practice, and AOPA is assisting Silverstein and other pilots with Freedom of Information Act requests to agencies involved.

Several pilots responding to AOPA coverage of Silverstein's experience expressed concern that the balance between freedom and security has shifted too far. AOPA continues to press involved agencies for explanation and clarification of policies that appear, based on accounts provided by pilots, to be directed toward drug interdiction, with several reported searches involving aircraft that had operated in California.

As a law enforcement component of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Office of Air and Marine is charged with protecting the United States against threats in the air and sea environments primarily along the border and in the drug source and transit zones used by transnational smuggling organizations. Additionally, Air and Marine conducts other law enforcement and search and rescue efforts, such as responding to tips regarding suspicious activity in the air or marine environment to protect against threats to the American people and the nation's infrastructure.

In accordance with the Privacy Act among other legal and policy considerations, CBP does not release information to the public about individuals who may be encountered by Air Interdiction Agents. Although we regret any inconvenience that these activities may have, we welcome an open dialogue with the general aviation community as we work together to maintain civil liberties and protect against threats to the U.S.

It's time for you and me to send Barack Obama and every elitist gun-ban politician in Washington a clear message...

 
They don't rule us. They work for us! Our rights don't come from them. Our Second Amendment freedom is GUARANTEED by the U.S. Constitution and NON-NEGOTIABLE!

If we want to save our freedom NOW then we have to spread this message to every corner of America!

So please, watch this video. And after you do, be sure to email it to friends...post it on Facebook...link to it in blogs and forums. Wherever and whenever you can help spread the word, please do it today.

But we need to do more. MUCH MORE.

So in addition to sharing this video with friends, PLEASE help NRA take our campaign to the next level.

It's absolutely critical that we buy commercial air time RIGHT NOW so we can answer Barack Obama and his elitist allies, word-for-word, every time they try to belittle our freedoms and shame us into silence.

FREEDOM in America means;

1. The privilege to fly private aircraft unrestricted to all locations within the United States to include Reagan National Airport
2. Have any gun of choice to law abiding citizen
3. Concealed Carry Permit Holders to be expedited through TSA security at all AMTRAK and Airport locations
4. Universal CCW recognized state to state reciprocity similar to a drivers license
5. Only United States citizens to be recognized to own property, vote, collect government benefits
6.  Government I.D. required to vote, purchase property
7. Issue right to work permits for one year ONLY, then deportation
8. Ammunition is unrestricted and available, not restricted by government
9. Reduced federal government oversight
10. Promote states rights
11. Reduce federal spending to alleviate tax burdens on middle class Americans
12. Expand natural resource energy production
13. Support American business

 PLEASE PASS THIS TO YOUR FRIENDS

NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO SIT BACK

Aircraft and avionics technicians and mechanics perform scheduled and unscheduled maintenance on aircraft and helicopters.  In 2010 there were 142,300 employed mechanics.

By 2020 the forecast is 6% growth rate of aviation maintenance jobs, about 9,000 positions.  This growth rate is a slower rate of growth than the overall growth rate projected for all jobs till 2020.

How does one become an aircraft mechanic or technician?  It is not required to have a college degree but it may be helpful to have a degree to obtain your first job.  Most mechanics and technicians learn their trade at an FAA-Approved Aviation Maintenance Technician School.  Course work may last 18-24 months.  About 30% of all aviation schools offer college degrees.  The student may obtain a two (2) or four (4) year degree at selected schools.  Recently employers are considering candidates for aviation maintenance positions more favorably on those applicants with a four (4) year degree.

Other aviation schools offer technical academic and practical courses.  Aircraft trade schools offer an emphasis in airframe composite, avionics, jet engines, wiring, aircraft systems and much more.   Additional courses are required in mathematics, electronics, computer science, mechanical drawing, F.A.A. regulations and much more.

To obtain certification as a mechanic the FAA offers separate certifications, one for airframe mechanics and one for engine mechanics, (A&P) certificate.  The minimum qualifications to become a mechanic is; be at least 18 years of age, be fluent in English, and have 30 months of experience working on airframes and engines.  The completion of a certified school program at an approved FAA Aviation Maintenance Technician School can substitute for the experience requirement.

Applicants must pass oral and practical tests administered by an FAA Designated Mechanic Examiner.  To obtain the certification all tests must be passed within two (2) years of the initial application date of testing. Testing may be taken at designated testing facilities around the world.

Mechanics must inspect or repair aircraft every 90 days and attend a refresher course every 24 months to maintain license certification.

The daily job of an A&P mechanic may at times be stressful.  They must meet aircraft flight schedule departure times, maintain aircraft safety and repair aircraft in difficult work environments.  Occasionally mechanics are asked to work numerous hours beyond the standard work day and more than five days per week.

In North America wages in the profession may range from $33,000 to $72,000.  The median wage in 2010 was