A former Toronto-based flight attendant is accused of posing as a commercial pilot and active crew member to fraudulently obtain hundreds of free flights on U.S. airlines over a four-year period, according to American authorities.
U.S. prosecutors say Dallas Pokornik, 33, was arrested in Panama and extradited to the United States after being indicted on wire fraud charges in federal court in Hawaii last October. He pleaded not guilty Tuesday.
Court documents allege Pokornik worked as a flight attendant for a Toronto-based airline between 2017 and 2019, then later used counterfeit employee identification from that carrier to access non-revenue tickets reserved for pilots and flight attendants on three other airlines.
Prosecutors said Pokornik also requested access to the cockpit jump seat — an extra seat typically reserved for off-duty pilots — though it remains unclear whether he ever actually rode in a cockpit. The U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to provide further details.
The indictment does not name the airlines involved, identifying them only as carriers based in Honolulu, Chicago and Fort Worth, Texas. Representatives for Hawaiian Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Air Canada, headquartered in Toronto, also did not respond.
U.S. authorities said the alleged fraud spanned four years. A U.S. magistrate judge has ordered Pokornik to remain in custody. His federal public defender declined to comment.
The case has drawn comparisons to the film Catch Me If You Can, which dramatized the real-life exploits of Frank Abagnale, who famously impersonated a pilot to obtain free flights.