Times Of Swaziland: Hunter faces E500 000 fine Hunter faces E500 000 fine ================================================================================ TIMOTHY SIMELANE on 06/05/2013 00:00:00 MANZINI – Hunter Shongwe, the controversial private investigator, faces fines of up to E500 000 for allegedly flying a remote controlled aircraft with a camera without authorisation from the Civil Aviation Authority. Shongwe faces five charges, four of which are directly related to his spy plane. The small aircraft that cost him E20 000 was one of the PI’s many investigation tools. One of his main charges was based on Section 59 of the Civil Aviation Authority Act of 2009 in that, without a licence and authorisation, he operated the spy aircraft in April 2012. The charge stipulates that he did not have an airworthiness certificate or permit to fly the gadget in Swaziland airspace. Such a permit is issuable by the Civil Aviation Authority on terms and conditions. Reads the Act in part: “A person shall not operate or fly a civil aircraft without a valid airworthiness certificate or permit in violation of the terms and conditions of any such certificate.” Prohibits It further prohibits one from operating an aircraft in civil aviation in violation of any rule, regulation or certificate issued by the Director General under this Act. (The Director General is the CEO of SWACAA) Part 2 of the section carries the penalty for contravening the law. “A person who contravenes this section commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to imprisonment of a term not exceeding 10 years or a fine not exceeding E500 000 or both.” Meanwhile, Shongwe claimed that officers from the Swaziland Civil Aviation Authority (SWACAA) had advised him that the aircraft needed no licence. He alleged that his arrest was instigated by someone who fears being exposed. High flying toys, ‘witches’ in trouble MBABANE – The arrest of Hunter Shongwe for allegedly operating a spy aircraft has raised eyebrows among some parents who found nothing wrong with buying flying toys for their children. Some parents said, in an interview, on Friday the law should come out clear which toys should not be flown without a licence or authorisation. “The usual toy chopper flies just four metres above ground but other more sophisticated versions of such toys fly much further above the ground,” said Zintombi Dlamini who has a three-year-old son. Qualms Thulisile Masuku said she had no qualms with the Act. “A power driven toy should not fly that high, except if it is a kite, which are scarce to come by in Swaziland. But they need to be clear on the law, because with time we will have such toys.” When the Investigation Desk visited CNA in Mbabane, where several toys are on sale, a saleslady said, “We do not presume that a licence is required to fly these toys. Though I may not know how high they go, customers seem to like them.” Meanwhile, Shongwe said his aircraft flies 20 feet high (approximately six metres) and labelled it ‘just another toy’. Civil Aviation Authority’s Marketing and Corporate Affairs Director Sabelo Dlamini said toys flying above 150 metres high will definitely be taken to task. “Anything, even a kite, or witch on a broomstick should not fly above this limit,” he said. Panic He, however, said with regard to toys, there was no need for panic because most toys do not fly above the limit. “For any normal toy, a child is free to play it anywhere within the family yard because it does not fly that high.” However, Dlamini said the height was not the only yardstick for judging the illicitness of any particular contravention of the law. “We also take into consideration that though the gadget may be flying low, what really is its nature,” he said. In the Civil Aviation Authority Act, the definition of aircraft is “a machine that derives support in the atmosphere from the reactions of the air, other than the reactions of the air against the surface of the earth.”