PERRY, Ga. — A student pilot is facing years in prison after admitting to stealing a private plane and going on a joyride.
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Last week, Rufus Crane, 27, of Fla., pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of stolen aircraft.
Crane faces a maximum of ten years imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised release and a maximum fine of $250,000.
According to court documents, Crane stole a Bonanza A-36 plane stored at the Perry Airport in Perry, Ga., in May 2024.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Middle District of Georgia said the 27-year-old did not have flying credentials when he took the single-engine aircraft and flew it to the JAARS-Townsend Airport in Waxhaw, NC, landing at 12:42 a.m. on May 4.
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Officials said Crane left from Waxhaw on May 5 at 3:15 a.m. He stopped in South Carolina to refuel, then began to fly back to Perry.
Court documents state that Crane arrived in Perry at 5:46 a.m.; however, he couldn’t land immediately because it was too foggy and he couldn’t see the runway.
Crane flew the plane under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR), meaning he used the aircraft’s instruments and navigation aids instead of visual cues to fly the plane. Because of the fog, Crane flew to Cochran Municipal Airport in Cochran, Ga., where he refueled before landing the stolen plane back in Perry at around 11:01 a.m. on May 5, and returned the plane to the hangar.
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The attorney’s office said he only held a student pilot certificate at the time he was flying the stolen plane. He also kept the transponder of the Bonanza turned off, which meant the plane didn’t send signals to air traffic control to provide information on the plane’s location, altitude and speed.
“By choosing to steal a single-engine aircraft and fly to North Carolina—making landings at several regional airports along the way—the defendant put his own life and the lives of others at risk, despite not being fully trained or holding a pilot’s license,” said Acting U.S. Attorney C. Shanelle Booker.
Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 17.
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