'Super' Dell may have flown into new legal woes

DRAPER — There's more potential trouble for "Super" Dell Schanze.

Police say they are investigating whether a pilot violated federal aviation laws by flying a powered paraglider over I-15 Wednesday morning during rush hour.

Although the pilot had not been positively identified as of Wednesday, numerous witnesses, including Utah Highway Patrol troopers, said the paraglider had yellow wings and a big "S" written on it. It's the same type of aircraft Schanze is known to fly.

While Schanze admitted flying his paraglider in that area Wednesday morning, he said he did nothing wrong.

"I was flying over a wide open field. As far as I know I did everything correctly," he said. "I just happen to be the type of person that attracts more attention than anyone else on earth."

The incident began about 8:30 a.m. when motorists on I-15 started calling Draper police and the Utah Highway Patrol about a low-flying paraglider.

UHP Sgt. Blaine Robbins said he and other troopers arrived in the area a short time later to check out the complaints.

"(The paraglider) got very very low. It never did get overly low over the top of the freeway. On the side of the freeway it got really low," he said.

Schanze told the Deseret Morning News he flew over I-15, but at a minimum 500 feet, which he said is legal.

"You can't go buzzing over the freeway and kick people's windshields," he said.

He also said he was near the freeway but that too was legal. Schanze said he'd be happy to talk to the Federal Aviation Administration if needed because he does not believe he did anything wrong.

"I try to obey every single (rule), and I'm pretty sure I did," he said.

But both police and the head of the U.S. Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association in Utah say they believe that whoever was piloting that paraglider was indeed breaking the law.

Steve Mayer, owner of Cloud 9 Paragliding and the U.S. Paragliding regional director, said flying over the freeway at any altitude is illegal for a paraglider. The 500-foot rule only applies to airplanes, he said.

Although he could not positively confirm it was Schanze flying over the freeway Wednesday, he said other pilots have talked to Schanze in the past about breaking rules.

"He's been talked to by lots of local pilots," he said. "We're concerned he's reflecting poorly on us."