A fledgling pilot with a fresh PPL should not have his entire career jeopardized because of a simple mistake that didn't even result in a loss of separation or an emergency. End of story. If it's his first offense, then no harm, no foul, let him off with a slap on the wrist. But a violation that will stay with him to the grave is a little bit excessive (yeah ok, cleared after 2 years, but you still have to check "yes")

Suppose you're a 22-year-old college graduate who got caught shoplifting when you were 14, but graduated with honors and have an otherwise clean record (actual example). Should you still have that infraction held against you during a job search? Of course not. We all make mistakes when we are young and inexperienced, but it doesn't haunt us our entire lives. An FAA violation has the potential to do that, and to hold a 200 hour pilot to the same standards as a 20,000 hour pilot is insane. Pilots are people, people make mistakes, and people with less experience make even more mistakes. Experience makes a difference.

Nobody is arguing against taking responsibility for one's actions. Instead, maybe what should become more "popular" is the application of common sense when it comes to enforcing the law. There are inmates in California prisons serving life sentences for minor misdemeanors. Where is the common sense? There are pilots whose careers have ended over an inconsequential altitude bust. I ask, again, where is the common sense? Why throw the entire book at a pilot when a simple slap on the wrist will do?

I have a better solution. You asked about a cop giving a ticket. When you get a speeding ticket, you can get it removed from your record by taking defensive driver training. This is a fantastic system. Instead of just punishing the driver, they get the opportunity to show they have learned their lesson and *earn* a clean record through re-education. Why not have the same thing for pilots? If you bust a restricted area, mandate retraining with a CFI, get rechecked with an examiner, and have the violation expunged from the record. This should be an option for all cases like this airspace bust. It could be an add-on to the WINGS program.

USMCFLYR, I think we are going to have to agree to disagree on this one. You are an FAA employee; I am an airline pilot. Although we work together as much as possible, at the end of the day our relationship is one of cop-citizen. And when we are suspected of breaking a FAR, it becomes the relationship of cop-criminal, and we sit at opposite ends of the table. Whenever an FAA examiner sits in the jump seat, I can't wait for the flight to be over. I am a competent pilot, but when the examiner has the power to end your career over any mistake they deem significant (very subjective), it makes for a very tense environment.

DISCLAIMER: This entire post has been prepared by Yazzoo's attorney. Any and all statements may not be attributed to Yazzoo himself, and no part of this post may be considered an admission of guilt ;)