Pilot/Parrot Story

[ShotOne]

Two Indonesian Airforce pilots have been arrested in Oz trying to smuggle parrots on board a military aircraft. They were returning home from their C130 course conducted by th RAAF.

Makes me wish I was a Sun headline writer

[ShyTorque]

Were they squawking?

[GGR155]

Up before the beak no doubt

[SASless]

Popped up to the Perch?

[Wander00]

Indonesian Blue?

[NutLoose]

I heard they got caught after ATC asked how many pax on board and they replied

"pieces of... 8 pieces off...8"


Hat, coat, gone.....

[CoffmanStarter]

A bit of a headache for the authorities who were looking for a few aspirin ... but the parrots-ate-em-all :p

Hat, coat, boots, scarf .... door

[ShyTorque]

They could do bird for this.

[500N]

Is this Jet Blast or the Military forum :O

Love the humour :ok:

[Thud105]

Maybe they were planning on going parrot-shooting?

[onetrack]

I trust Customs gave those Indonesians a pollygraph test to ensure they were telling the truth.

It's pretty obvious there was no way Customs would let those birds leave the country - they were some of the most knowledgeable parrots they had ever encountered.
After questioning the parrots at length, Customs determined they were all pollymaths.

[NutLoose]

Probably a cunning plan, get type rated, kicked out then go sell there skills elsewhere...

They should have told them they thought it was a toilet duck

[John Eacott]

They were returning home from their C130 course conducted by th RAAF.

Unfortunately they were returning home with one of the two C130's that have been gifted to the Indons. There was to have been a big handing over ceremony at RAAF Williamtown which was cancelled as the Indons don't love us any more.

But they still want our largesse :ugh:

Back to the headlines....

Bit of a Pollyanna moment there.

[500N]

John

I love that. They spit the dummy, cancel mil co operation including this ceremony and the big exercise up NT way
but won't quite ban the Indo pilots from picking up the freebie C-130's !

No wonder they look at us with disdain.

[SASless]

Sounds like a cracker of a story!:uhoh:

[onetrack]

John, what sh*ts me about this whole exercise, is that trafficking in our fauna is regarded as a hanging offence for anyone else.
Other smugglers that have been caught, have been regularly fined $10,000 or $20,000, and even jailed.

Japanese Lizard Smugglers caught - Perth Now (http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/japanese-men-charged-for-wa-lizard-smuggle/story-fnhocxo3-1226732306442)

http://www.customs.gov.au/webdata/resources/files/wildlife_smuggling_fact_sheet.pdf

"The maximum penalty for illegal importing or exporting wildlife
under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation
Act 1999 is A$100,000 and/or 10 years jail."

However, it's pretty obvious someone pretty high-up stepped in here, and decided that throwing a couple of crooked Indo pilots into remand, or even putting them in the dock, could turn the Indo reaction to the whole spying episode, into something equating to a nuclear detonation.
It stinks, but I guess someone decided it wasn't worth the risk.

[jolihokistix]

So what happened to them?

[500N]

They were supposedly according to well informed people on here
released without charge and left the country.

[jolihokistix]

Thanks for the follow-up. :ok:

[500N]

No worries. It hasn't hit the media yet, I somehow doubt it will.

Smuggling birds / animals is big business and worth a lot of $$$.
They seem to jail them quicker than druggies over here !!!

[fallmonk]

It was just a misunderstanding the birds where the in flight lunch ;-)

[onetrack]

Fallmonk - Then I trust someone told them about the galah recipe!

[onetrack]

It hasn't hit the media yet, I somehow doubt it will.

500N - Sorry, you're wrong there. It's all over the media. I would have preferred to see the Indo pilots feature getting caught, in a TV prime-time edition of "Border Security" ... :suspect:

Indonesian Air Force Pilots accused of trying to smuggle parrots - The Australian (http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/policy/indonesian-air-force-pilots-accused-of-trying-to-smuggle-parrots-in-hercules-aircraft/story-fn59nm2j-1226771207891)

Indonesian air force pilots accused of trying to smuggle parrots in Hercules aircraft - NT News (http://www.ntnews.com.au/news/northern-territory/indonesian-air-force-pilots-accused-of-trying-to-smuggle-parrots-in-hercules-aircraft/story-fnk0b1zt-1226771288284)

BBC News - Indonesian air force pilots face parrot smuggling probe (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-25153315)

https://www.facebook.com/theprojecttv/posts/10151810926623441


Anyway, not to worry. I now know, for my next parrot-smuggling run, all I need is an Indo AF pilots uniform, and I'll be sweet ... :suspect: At $25,000 or $30,000 a parrot, half a dozen will set me up nicely for a while. ;)

If I'm just unlucky enough to get caught, I know the penalty will be just be a light smack on the hand with a wet lettuce, and a stern remonstration - "off you go, then!" :suspect: :suspect: :} :rolleyes:

[500N]

Well, I looked but they weren't up when I did so.

Good to see that the MSN isn't shying away from reporting it.


Big money in smuggling wildlife and Aust has heaps of it that everyone else
wants so it's not surprising they tried, they (The Indos) would probably get 5 years wages in one hit.

[Schnowzer]

I thought the title would be the one about the pilot who walked into a bar with a duck on his head, the barman said "where did you get that", the duck said "dunno it just grew out of my arse!"

[Agaricus bisporus]

Well, they were in the land of the budgie smugglers...