Low Flying Helicopter on Candlewood Lake Busted By the FAA

This is an update to an article I originally published on September 16, 2024. To summarize, "It's a picture-perfect day on Candlewood Lake, ideal for an afternoon of boating with a group of friends. Let's say you've decided to anchor about 200 hundred yards off of Chicken Rock. Suddenly, you hear the sound of a helicopter approaching, but instead of flying over, the pilot begins slowing down and proceeds to hover 200 feet over your boat!"

After many complaints were filed with the FAA, New Milford resident Avi Shevah responded: "he operated within the regulations, flies in a safe manner, and his R-22 helicopter has a registration that gives him permission to fly over water."

Sorry, Ari. You're busted! According to Hearst Connecticut Media, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ruled that Shevah violated federal regulations. Between late July and the beginning of September, the Robinson R-22 hovered below the limits specified by the FAA while being flown unsafely. Danbury Municipal Airport Administrator Michael Safranek filed the complaint. It could have been worse. At least it wasn't an Apache attack helicopter!!

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The notice by the FAA failed to state the violation that occurred and what actions it would take. Boaters' reactions to Shevah's helicopter shenanigans run the gamut from curiosity to fascination to anger. Question: Why do you think Shevah was looming over boaters in his R-22 Helicopter? I've come up with some possibilities.