The New York Post


 

 

 

 

 

September 26, 2001, Wednesday


NEW AALIYAH MYSTERY - FED WHO OK'D PILOT KILLS SELF

BYLINE: MALCOLM BALFOUR Post Correspondent

SECTION: All Editions; Pg. 034


LANTANA, Fla. - The FAA inspector who gave Aaliyah's pilot what turned out to be his final checkout flight killed himself last week, officials told The Post.

And in another bizarre development, the owner of the charter plane that crashed Aug. 25 in the Bahamas - killing the superstar singer and seven members of her entourage - claims pilot Luis Morales lied about his flying experience to get the job.



The lawyer for the family of the pilot, who also died in the crash, denied the allegation.

Gilbert Chacon, owner of Blackhawk International Airways, has filed a complaint about the pilot with the Federal Aviation Administration.

Chacon's lawyer, Mike Moulis, told the FAA, "Morales inappropriately logged hundreds of hours as 'pilot in command,' when it was questionable whether he was even a pilot on the flights [he logged]."

The lawyer told the Sun Sentinel newspaper that Morales' logbook went from 580 hours of flying time on one page to 1,580 hours on the next page.

But Gabriel Penagaricano, representing the Morales family, said, "These wild allegations are only trying to deflect the blame, which falls squarely on the shoulders of the aircraft owner. Mr. Morales is not here to defend himself."

Penagaricano said that, under the charter license, only Chacon was permitted to fly the plane.

Pilots who worked with Morales told The Post they doubted he had the experience to fly the 10-seat Cessna 402-B that went down on takeoff from Abaco island.

He was checked out by the FAA in early August in a much smaller and easier-to-fly Piper Seneca, permitting him to handle charters in that model aircraft.

The inspector who checked out Morales committed suicide last week, officials said. The FAA has refused to release his name or any information about why he took his own life.

Witnesses earlier said that Morales had objected to the amount of equipment the group brought aboard, but was browbeaten into making the flight.

People at the airport also said the plane was unbalanced, with two of Aaliyah's heavyweight bodyguards sitting in the rear. The combination of being overweight and tail-heavy is a recipe for disaster, aviation experts say.