TAMPA, Fla. — A Bradenton man was caught on camera landing a helicopter in the middle of a closed shorebird nesting site.
A witness told Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials that a female exited the helicopter and took a few pictures before taking off again.
Officials said the helicopter landed on the south tip of Egmont Key on May 12. The pilot was later identified as Ernesto Cordero, 53, who took off from Albert Whitted Airport in Pinellas County and flew along Fort Desoto and Egmont Key before landing in Punta Gorda.
The video shows Cordero landing the helicopter on the beach causing numerous protected shorebird species, such as black skimmers and sandwich terns, to flee their nests.
Cordero told wildlife officials he thought there was a fuel leak, which is why he landed there. He said he could smell fuel but never declared an emergency with air traffic control.
He was cited for entering a closed area, landing an aircraft in a state park and threatening federally designated endangered and threatened species.