By now this has been reported in several languages: Chilean authorities have detained and charged a Chinese-born American teenager for a false flight plan and unauthorized flight of a single-engine Cessna 182 from Punta Arenas to King George Island in the Antarctic region, and other charges may be added.
Chilean media are reporting that for now, the kid may not leave Chile pending further prosecution measures and is required to make a monthly sign-in. The judge in the matter has established a typical 90 day investigation period.
The set of potential points of violation is actually rather lengthy, in part because of the list of requirements that Chile’s aeronautical directorate imposes on flights to King George Island, including insurance and environmental compliance measures.
And then there is the hilarious invention of the kid’s defense attorney, Karina Ulloa, who insisted on the illegality of the detention in denying that there was a violation of the Aeronautical Code. [Yeah, right…] Her argument, which defies belief, is that in the course of the authorized overflight of Punta Arenas, child-pilot Guo experienced an emergency situation due to “climatic reasons” and subsequently had to find someplace else to land, like maybe, you know, somewhere several hundred km away, like the Argentine Antarctic airfield, but you know, the Chilean base in Antarctica was closer, so …
The attorney is a bigger joke than the client: Ulloa =>