Golf-course pilot lands a few charges

He may have been trying to help his son, but prosecutors say a Lake Villa Township pilot endangered the 14-year-old by landing a small plane on a Lincolnshire golf course.

There was considerably less hoopla Tuesday afternoon as Robert Kadera, 65, turned himself in to Lincolnshire police on two counts of reckless conduct charges and one count of endangering the life or health of a child.

The Navy veteran drew national attention March 1 after landing his Piper PA-16 Clipper on the 7th fairway of the Crane's Landing Golf Course at the Marriott's Lincolnshire Resort.

He told police he wanted to fly to beat traffic so his son wouldn't be late for a tennis lesson at the nearby Lincolnshire Club, across Route 22 from the golf course.

The single-engine plane, equipped with skis, touched down on the snow-covered fairway, took off again, and on the second attempt traveled about 850 feet before coming to rest 26 feet from the four-lane road.

Charges were filed Tuesday by the Lake County state's attorneys office.

"This was a careless and irresponsible act," said Patricia Fix, assistant state's attorney.

"We filed the charges to express our outrage over the fact that a child was exposed to this potentially dangerous situation."

The charges are misdemeanors punishable by up to a year in jail and a fine of $2,500, according to Lincolnshire police.

Kadera, of 21990 W. 6th Ave., voluntarily surrendered about 2 p.m. dressed in a suit and tie. Bond was set at $10,000. He posted $1,000 cash and was released with a May 13 court date.

Although talkative with local media in the days after the incident, Kadera declined comment Tuesday except to say he was cooperating with the Federal Aviation Administration in its investigation.

Buffalo Grove attorney Judith Bethge, who accompanied Kadera to the police station, acknowledged it was an unusual case but thought it should have remained in the FAA's jurisdiction.

"It's just a matter of is it a crime or not. It's our contention he did not violate any criminal statutes," she said.

"I can't find any case law that's directly on point regarding this situation. It's a pretty novel factual circumstance."

FAA spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory said Tuesday the agency's investigation is continuing and would not discuss specifics.

"Our case is still open. It has to go through a lot of reviews before it's completed."

Kadera's pilot license remains valid, she said. Pilots are obligated to follow the rules of flight, which are specific in regards to the type of aircraft, training, time of day or special notices, for example.

Pilots flying by visual flight rules don't need to file a flight plan but are required to use a transponder, which "basically allows your plane to show up on radar," Cory said.

Controllers would be able to gather information about the plane, including speed and altitude for example, to determine whether it would be interfering with other planes taking off or landing.

Fix said prosecutors charged Kadera with reckless conduct because he flew lower than 1,000 feet, landed within 500 feet of a road and did not have the required transponder to be flying within 30 miles of O'Hare International Airport.

Bethge said Kadera was a "down-to-earth family man" whose passion was flying, and that he had been doing so for 40 years.

"It is novel and they're (prosecutors) obviously trying to make a point," she said. "You would think the commotion surrounding the original incident would have been enough and we could all move on."