"Top Pilot is accused of £500k cocaine drug smuggling"
 

May be more appropriate in Private Flying or Instructors, but I placed it here as the individual named is ex-RAF and quite well known amongst the more experienced members here. Mods, please feel free to move as required.

Reported in the North Wales Daily Post of the 1st August 2009:

"A TOP pilot and two passangers have denied smuggling 16kgs of cocaine worth more than £500,000 into an Anglesey airfield.

David Lloyd, 63 of Llangristiolus in Anglesey - described by his solicitor as a former RAF pilot and winchman and one of Britain's most experienced flying instructors - denied knowingly importing the drug at the island's Mona airstrip. Defence solicitor Eilian Williams told Caernarfon magistrates 'He's a respected man. He wants to clear his name.'

They (the pilot and two passangers) were refused bail and remanded in custody until Monday..."

camlobe

Not at the same time though

He must have been a fly-by-wire pilot :E

Innocent until proven, surely.

Camlobe, I'm surprised. Gossip, pure gossip.

Aren't winchmen referred to as ' Dope on a rope'?

And surprising indeed that this has not been picked up elsewhere, occupation notwithstanding. Half a million of class A is still a significant haul..:confused:

Really?
And why would that be gossip?
Gossip, same as these?

Pilot arrested in cannabis probe - News - The Independent

Coventry Telegraph - News - Coventry News - Coventry heroin smuggling mastermind jailed

Or gossip because he is ex-RAF and therefore couldn't have done it?

No, because he wouldn't have been caught :E

The two examples reported above hardly qualify as 'masterminds' do they?

Most drug busts involve low level user-dealers or amateurs after a quick profit. The real masterminds are unknown.

Will be interesting to hear the outcome, but if 'not guilty' it won't make the front page.

Not so much "gold bars" as "iron bars"

What is the latest news?
 

Anymore news on the court case?

Anyone have an update on this case?
 

Firstly, Dave Lloyd has never been an RAF pilot. He was a winchman and became a commercial pilot after leaving the RAF. He then had a whole range of flying jobs before settling down as the CFI (well, only instructor) at RAF Mona Flying Club.

Does anyone have an update of the drug smuggling case against Dave Lloyd?

Local HMC & R man told us recently that Dave Lloyd is out on bail.


Time to spare, go by air
Hen Ddraig

Only 'Top pilots' wear four gold bars on their epaulettes.:=

Not related to this case but a few years ago I knew a pilot who flew 'friends' as and when they wanted. His comment was "I don't ask and I don't know". Came as a shock to him when the special squad pinned him down at the airfield with guns to his head. He, luckily, got away with it as there were other circumstances but the two with him didn't - they were carrying 7 millions pounds worth of cocain..

My own attitude is that we all have a responsibility to question if we have any suspicions about why our passengers want to be flown anywhere.

To me "I don't ask so I don't know" is not a valid argument when it comes to aiding drug smugglers. If someone said that to me it would seem that they had a bl**dy good idea.

Just found out he is on bale with a tag and has been charged by the police. Apparently he was under surveilance for 8 months beforehand. If he's innocent, I hope he clears his name...but now looking like a strong case As RAF Mona is a military airfield, I wonder what supervsion there was of his activities?

Flew out of Mona a couple of years ago (with full permission of the RAF and during operational hours) and was subsequently contacted by the aformentioned CFI and informed that I required his permission as well.

Sep 12 2009 by Eryl Crump, Daily Post
A PILOT and two passengers smuggled 16kgs of cocaine worth more than £1m into an Anglesey airfield, a court heard.
Flying instructor David John Lloyd, 63, of Llangristiolus near Llangefni, is charged with conspiracy to import illegal drugs.
Passengers Paul Roche, 53, and Matthew Lockwood, 28, both of Prestwich, Manchester, are also charged with conspiracy to import drugs.
Lloyd, described by his solicitor as a former RAF rescue winchman who had taken part in 300 life saving rescue missions, was the pilot of a single-engined Diamond aircraft on July 29.
It landed at RAF Mona near Bodffordd, a small airstrip used by RAF and civilian training aircraft, and was met by police and customs officers.
Lloyd and the two men were arrested after the drugs were found.
Magistrates at Caernarfon were told the three men were initially charged with knowingly importing the drugs.
But Janice Wild, prosecuting on behalf of HM Customs, asked for that charge to be substituted for the more serious charge of conspiracy.
She said: “They are charged, in that between July 26 and July 29 this year, they conspired with each other and other persons, known and unknown, to evade prohibition of the importation of controlled drugs of class A, namely cocaine.”
Ms Wild said the matter could only be heard by a crown court and asked the case be transferred to the higher court.
The three men spoke only to confirm their personal details yesterday and were not asked to enter pleas on the new charge.
The three men were allowed conditional bail until the next hearing.
Magistrates refused to allow applications by all three men’s lawyers to relax some of their stringent bail conditions.

Smuggling A/c
 

Does any one have an ID for the aircraft, it was a single engined Diamond DA40. but which one?

Think you may find it's G-CCLV Currently in secure hangarage at RAF Shawbury


Time to spare, go by air

Hen Ddraig