Former flight attendant posed as a pilot and received hundreds of free flights, U.S. authorities say
NBC News • • nation
Key Points:
- Dallas Pokornik, a former Canadian flight attendant, was arrested in Panama after being indicted on wire fraud charges in Hawaii for posing as a commercial pilot and flight attendant to secure hundreds of free flights from U.S. airlines.
- Pokornik used fake employee IDs from his former Toronto-based airline employer to access tickets reserved for pilots and flight attendants on three other airlines based in Honolulu, Chicago, and Fort Worth.
- The scheme lasted four years, and prosecutors revealed Pokornik even requested to sit in the cockpit jump seat, though it is unclear if he ever did so.
- Following his extradition, Pokornik pleaded not guilty and was ordered to remain in custody by a U.S. magistrate judge.