Star Wars and Indiana Jones legend Harrison Ford is well known for his piloting hobby. The actor has been flying for years and has been involved in humanitarian missions, search and rescues, and assisting with wildfires. But he’s had a couple of close shaves, too.
A few years back, Ford landed on the wrong part of John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, flying over an American Airlines jet. He also once had to make an emergency landing on a golf course, though the cause was engine failure and it was ruled not to be his fault.
But now the actor may face losing his wings after an incident at Hawthorne Airport in Southern California. Believing he was following instructions from the control tower, Ford began taking his plane from the runway to the taxiway. Unfortunately, the control tower was actually telling him to remain in place as another plane was coming in to land. Air traffic control wasn’t happy about it, yelling at him to “get across that runway now! I told you to hold short! You need to listen up!” Ford sheepishly replied: “Excuse me sir, I thought exactly the opposite. I’m terribly sorry.”
The actor’s reps later released a statement, saying the following:
“Mr. Ford crossed the airport’s only runway in his aircraft after he misheard a radio instruction from ATC. He immediately acknowledged the mistake and apologized to ATC for the error… The purpose of the flight was to maintain currency and proficiency of the aircraft.”
The airport also confirmed that at no point was there any danger of a plane collision, with a distance of 3,600 feet between the aircrafts. But that doesn’t mean Ford is out of the woods.
The FAA has opened an investigation into the incident, which comes at a pretty bad time for the actor, who’s in the process of getting his pilot’s license updated and renewed in order to participate in further humanitarian missions. It’s not known what the possible consequences of the investigation could be, but it’s safe to say it’s something Harrison Ford could do without.
