A former flight attendant from Canada has been arrested for pretending to be a commercial pilot and a current flight attendant in order to get hundreds of free flights on U.S. airlines, according to authorities.
Dallas Pokornik, 33, hails from Toronto and was apprehended in Panama last October following charges of wire fraud in Hawaii’s federal court.
After being extradited, he entered a not guilty plea on Tuesday.
Court documents reveal that Pokornik worked as a flight attendant for a Toronto airline between 2017 and 2019. He allegedly created a counterfeit employee ID from that airline, which he used to access pilot and flight attendant tickets at three other airlines.
Prosecutors said Pokornik even requested a spot in the “jump seat,” typically meant for off-duty pilots in the cockpit. However, it remains unclear whether he has actually been in a cockpit, with the U.S. Attorney’s Office declining to provide details.
The indictment mentions that the implicated airline is based in Honolulu, Chicago, and Fort Worth, Texas, though it doesn’t name it. Representatives from Hawaiian Airlines, United Airlines, and American Airlines have not responded to requests for comment, nor has Air Canada.
This alleged scheme reportedly spanned four years, according to prosecutors in Hawaii.
A U.S. magistrate judge has ordered Pokornik to stay in custody for now. His federal defender has chosen to remain silent on the case.
Interestingly, a recent incident involved an off-duty pilot from Horizon Airlines who told officials he was “not okay” just before turning off the engine during a flight. This pilot, Joseph Emerson, later revealed he had been struggling with depression and received a prison sentence last November.
This situation draws comparisons to the movie “Catch Me If You Can,” featuring Leonardo DiCaprio, which narrates the story of Frank Abagnale, who fraudulently poses as a pilot to scam airlines for free tickets.
