The FAA investigation determined that those flights “were careless or reckless so as to endanger the life or property of another.”

The letter states that in addition to operating his business without authorization, Mason violated air safety regulations by performing acrobatic flight maneuvers when the paying passenger had no parachute.

This conduct “demonstrates you presently lack the degree of care, judgment and responsibility required,” the letter concludes.

Mason was instructed to surrender his revoked pilot certificate to the FAA immediately, subject to a fine of $1,828 per day for each day he fails to surrender it.

Mason and his wife have two children, one of them disabled. The flying business is their livelihood.

The letter says the FAA won’t accept an application for Mason for a new pilot certificate for one year.

Mason has appealed the FAA action, though he remains barred from flying during the appeal process. The FAA will schedule an appeal hearing, likely in April. He did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Complaints from residents

The FAA ruling kills what had become a controversial business operation.

Originally, Mason flew out of a grass airstrip at the Blue Ribbon Farms development in Sequim, where the family has a home. Many residents there are former airline pilots and have hangars for small private planes beside their houses.

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