Pilot Sentenced to 6 Months in Jail for Flying While Drunk
A North Hollywood man whose plane nearly collided with another aircraft last January was sentenced in Ventura on Wednesday to six months in County Jail for flying while intoxicated, according to court records.
A Ventura Municipal Court judge also imposed a fine of $1,700 on Ronald Lichnovski, 44, and ordered his flying license suspended for a year.
Lichnovski was arrested Jan. 24 after he landed his Piper Tri-Pacer aircraft at Oxnard Airport.
Police said he failed sobriety tests, which showed he had a blood alcohol level of .28, more than six times the limit of .04 for pilots set by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Lichnovski took off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima, where air traffic control officials said his flying forced another pilot to dive 400 feet to avoid a collision. Air traffic controllers at the Navy’s Point Mugu Missile Test Center, who noticed his erratic flight pattern, ordered him to land at Oxnard Airport.
A Municipal Court jury found him guilty July 8 of flying under the influence of alcohol.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
