Investigation ongoing on pilot’s student license misuse

In Anchorage, Alaska, federal authorities are delving into the alleged misuse of a student pilot license by an Alaska resident who recently had to endure hours of waiting for rescue while stranded with two young family members on an aircraft wing after landing on a semi-frozen lake. The aircraft partially sank following the landing.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) disclosed on Thursday that the pilot, whom officials and federal aviation records identify as John B. Morris Jr. from Kenai, is under examination, as is customary for all pilots involved in such incidents. Notably, Morris holds a student license that explicitly restricts him from flying with passengers.
The FAA’s possible disciplinary actions for violations range from counseling to suspending or revoking a student pilot’s license. Morris’ Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser, listed under his name, landed for unknown reasons near a glacier on Tustumena Lake, located on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. The pilot and his companions were rescued the next day after spending a cold night on the plane’s wing. Interestingly, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced Thursday that it has ceased investigating the mishap.
The incident unfolded when Morris and the two young family members, identified by Alaska State Troopers as being of elementary and middle school age, embarked on a sightseeing flight from the Soldotna airport. Via social media, Morris reached out for assistance in finding his son and granddaughters, who were overdue after their Sunday afternoon excursion.
Lacking a locator beacon, the last signal from the pilot’s cell phone indicated the plane was above Tustumena Lake, approximately 80 miles south of Anchorage. Volunteer pilot Terry Godes, along with about a dozen other pilots, joined the search for the missing aircraft and eventually spotted it on the lake. As he approached, the three individuals on the plane’s wing gestured to him.
The Alaska Army National Guard subsequently dispatched a helicopter to rescue the trio, transporting them to a local hospital where they were treated for non-life-threatening injuries. While the girls remained dry, Morris became wet due to the water encroaching into the sinking plane, which also damaged his phone, rendering it inoperable.
NTSB investigations focus on accidents, while the FAA is responsible for enforcement aspects. Earlier, Mark Ward, an NTSB investigator, disclosed that Morris Jr. neither reported the incident within the mandatory 24-hour window nor returned their calls, which he verbalized to the Associated Press.
Should it transpire that Morris misjudged the solidity of the frozen lake surface, that would differ significantly from a scenario where mechanical failure forced the landing, Ward stated. However, the NTSB clarified on Thursday that their investigation was terminated because there was no substantial damage or severe injuries, precluding it from their purview, according to spokesperson Sarah Taylor Sulick.
The FAA routinely scrutinizes pilot proficiency and compliance in accident probes, as confirmed by spokesperson Ian Gregor. Nevertheless, he refrained from commenting on the specifics of ongoing investigations.
Morris received his student pilot license in 2018, with a restriction explicitly banning passenger transport. Ward conveyed that the FAA had indicated a historical pattern of Morris infringing this rule, and he has not sought a standard pilot’s license.
Under FAA regulations, student pilots are prohibited from carrying passengers, transporting property for hire, or receiving compensation, and engaging in flights tied to business operations. Additionally, international flights are restricted unless solo training flights are involved from certain Alaskan communities to adjoining regions in Canada.
The general acknowledgment within the aviation community is that student pilots frequently infringe upon the rule against carrying passengers. The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association lists this as a common violation among student pilots. FAA’s response to such violations ranges from training and advisories on one end to suspension or revocation of licenses at the other.