Fact: Stranger than Fiction?
Sounds like a bloke I once worked with, who put it over many people (including me) for quite a while. Quite aside from his illustrious career in the army (which he would have to have joined at age 5 to have done everything he claimed) and driving an FJ Holden taxi with a million miles on the clock, he was holder of the world upside down flying record.
During the time I knew him, he was promoted from Major to Colonel, and organised the Anzac day ceremonies for a large area while impersonating an army officer. He was eventually convicted, but about 20 years later turned up again as a retired Brigadier in a country town, where he split the local RSL, half of whom knew he was a fraud, and half of whom believed his claim that his war work was so secret that his name was removed from army records.
During the time I knew him, he was promoted from Major to Colonel, and organised the Anzac day ceremonies for a large area while impersonating an army officer. He was eventually convicted, but about 20 years later turned up again as a retired Brigadier in a country town, where he split the local RSL, half of whom knew he was a fraud, and half of whom believed his claim that his war work was so secret that his name was removed from army records.
Join Date: Jun 2007
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There are plenty of guys like this around. I guess they just do it to massage their egos. Was talking to a guy recently who evidently has a PPL. The kind of person who you meet for the first time and they tell you their life story in the first 10 minutes. A definite sign of insecurity. Anyway this guy told me that his "friend" was delivering an A320 from Dublin to Manchester ??! His friend supposedly rang him and asked him if he wanted to come along and "have a go" 
! He went fairly quiet though when I told him that my uncle was an A330 skipper (which is true).
! He went fairly quiet though when I told him that my uncle was an A330 skipper (which is true).
Join Date: Apr 2008
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Reminds me of a story I read many years ago. A Scottish based airline pilot (genuine) owned a launderette as a sideline. On his regular visits he would usually pop into the newsagent next door for a chat. One day as he was leaving he heard the customer behind him ask the newsagent "Who was that bloke?"
" Oh, he's the guy who owns the launderette next door. Thinks he's a
airline pilot!"
" Oh, he's the guy who owns the launderette next door. Thinks he's a
airline pilot!"
Buttonpusher
Jim sounds pretty much off base as United don't have 380's.
It has to be a sad life if your self view is so low, you have to brag about fiction.
More than anything else, I feel very sorry for him.
Of course if he's having you on ......
It has to be a sad life if your self view is so low, you have to brag about fiction.
More than anything else, I feel very sorry for him.
Of course if he's having you on ......
Last edited by FLCH; 15th Aug 2012 at 20:57.
Join Date: Aug 2012
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I've got a very similar situation with a neighbour. He and his wife arrived in the village about 10 or so years ago and another neighbour bounded round in great excitement telling us that the newcomer was a retired airline pilot. When we first visited, the conservatory was full of those airliner models like you used to see in travel agents and naturally we asked who he flew for etc. Seems he'd been at various times a copper, a lorry driver, a coach driver and then latterly, had come into some money, paid for his training and got a job with Monarch, retiring early due to some health problem. He made a great thing about how he had met his current wife in a bar whilst dressed in his 'Captains' uniform.
Now we listened to all this stuff for a couple of years but as in all these cases, the longer it went on, the more it got embellished, up to the point where he apparently was captaining the the last transatlantic plane to leave US airspace after 9/11 shut it all down.
The thing is, he seems to know a fair bit about routes, cabin fits and the different aircraft variants but he's evasive when you get into the nuts and bolts of flying. As it happens, I let on fairly early on that I had done some powered flying towards a PPL and another neighbour has his. This didn't seem to put the bluffer off although when I dropped the odd technical question into conversation, he had a habit of changing the subject quickly. What did it for me was when a hot air balloon went over one day and he read the registration out loud as (something like): G - ABC1 (as opposed to G - ABCI). When I pulled him up on this, he just said that he'd forgotten the registrations were all letters!
Another colleague raised doubts openly and asked to see photos or a log book. The excuse given was that there had been a burglary at a previous house and all the stuff had gone missing.
It's got to the stage now where I don't bother about it any more and as some have said here, why 'out' him?, but it does rather annoy me that he persists, even though he must know the game's up as far as I'm concerned. I've seen the Army site where they pursue the 'Walts' mercilessly but I suppose when you've risked your life for Queen and country, it's a far greater insult to have imposters saying they've done the same. Also, it's easier to check the service and medal records and get absolute proof of deception.
At least he hasn't gone the whole hog and tried to con his way onto a flight deck....so far....
Now we listened to all this stuff for a couple of years but as in all these cases, the longer it went on, the more it got embellished, up to the point where he apparently was captaining the the last transatlantic plane to leave US airspace after 9/11 shut it all down.
The thing is, he seems to know a fair bit about routes, cabin fits and the different aircraft variants but he's evasive when you get into the nuts and bolts of flying. As it happens, I let on fairly early on that I had done some powered flying towards a PPL and another neighbour has his. This didn't seem to put the bluffer off although when I dropped the odd technical question into conversation, he had a habit of changing the subject quickly. What did it for me was when a hot air balloon went over one day and he read the registration out loud as (something like): G - ABC1 (as opposed to G - ABCI). When I pulled him up on this, he just said that he'd forgotten the registrations were all letters!
Another colleague raised doubts openly and asked to see photos or a log book. The excuse given was that there had been a burglary at a previous house and all the stuff had gone missing.
It's got to the stage now where I don't bother about it any more and as some have said here, why 'out' him?, but it does rather annoy me that he persists, even though he must know the game's up as far as I'm concerned. I've seen the Army site where they pursue the 'Walts' mercilessly but I suppose when you've risked your life for Queen and country, it's a far greater insult to have imposters saying they've done the same. Also, it's easier to check the service and medal records and get absolute proof of deception.
At least he hasn't gone the whole hog and tried to con his way onto a flight deck....so far....
