HOT AIR BALLOON SAFETY

We (Serengeti Balloon Safaris), feel that we must respond to the material published on Nigel Pogmore’s malicious and libellous website www.hotairballoonsafety.com

Most people will recognise this as a hate website and the work of a very bitter person. It is clearly a vendetta against the company and person that dared to dismiss him, rather than a campaign for safety as he purports.

The facts are that Pogmore was sacked on 9th March because of his unpredictable behaviour and frequent displays of aggression. He was undermining our chief pilot, accused a colleague (another pilot) of theft of vehicle spares, had threatened another pilot and was generally being disruptive and aggressive. He had in the weeks prior shouted at crew members and been abusive to our General Manager and shouted at me and banged my desk with his fists when I tried to discuss his behaviour with him. Other pilots did not want to fly on the same days as him.

He was paid in full up to date including holiday pay, full bonus’s a months’ pay in lieu of notice in accordance with his contract, plus airfare for him & his wife to Nepal. He has been paid his NSSF eventually recovered from the Government. He is owed nothing.

Pogmore took us to an employment tribunal in the UK to claim unfair dismissal, but the case was found in our favour.

It is complete nonsense that his dismissal had anything whatsoever to do with his concerns for safety. Rather, it was our concern for safety of passengers and colleagues that caused us concern regarding his mental state and we felt that he was a serious liability.

Safety is our absolute priority. We have been operating balloons in Serengeti since 1989 and have an excellent ballooning safety record.

Our balloons and all equipment are maintained to the very highest standards and routinely checked by the Civil Aviation Authority (as is our entire operation).

The accident that Pogmore refers to was to an aircraft of Skydive Kilimanjaro, not a balloon. The aircraft had returned that very same morning from a mandatory 100 hour service at a licensed Aviation Maintenance Company in Dar es Salaam. It flew without problem from Dar to Moshi. That afternoon it took off again but developed an engine problem shortly after takeoff. The accident was duly investigated by the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority. No fault was found regarding any maintenance or safety issues or any fault of the company whatsoever.

Pogmore did threaten to damage us if we did not reinstate him, apologise to him and compensate him. Clearly, accusations and insinuations that his dismissal had anything to do with his safety concerns are damaging and a figment of his creative and warped imagination. We would not be blackmailed.

Nigel Pogmore is sitting jobless in Kathmandu festering with resentment because we refuse to take him back. Why did he work for the company he describes? Why did he want to return and continue working for us? If the allegations he is making have any truth in them – why did he demand reinstatement?

Pogmore’s outrageous accusations of bribery and corruption are complete lies and are being addressed through the legal system. In his own words, he is ‘crouching in cyberspace’, but he cannot do this with immunity.

Amongst his other allegations is that of flying with insufficient fuel reserves on board. This is simply untrue. We fly with the required fuel plus required reserve for every trip. If he had occasion that he did not have adequate reserve on landing, then he should question either correct seating of the parachute or his own competency in efficiency and fuel management. How can it be that Pogmore alone had a ‘problem’?

I have belatedly been in contact with previous employers (in Sri Lanka, Nepal, USA, Canada and Egypt) and find that they each had similar experiences with Pogmore and sacked him. He launched similar campaigns against them and attempted to discredit these companies. No company he has ever worked for would have him back. It is interesting to note that he was actually offered a contract this year in Turkey. The management there however had seen his website and cautioned him to remove it. Pogmore’s response was the tirade against ballooning in Turkey you see on his website. His failure to get current work is unsurprising if employers come across his bizarre website.

Pogmore fraudulently registered several websites including serengetiballoonsafaris.com serengetiballoonsafaris.info serengetiballoon.com and sbssafety.com. We took this case to WIPO and the panel ruled that these sites contravened Trade Mark Law, were defamatory and used in bad faith. The Domains were handed to us.

Pogmore is a pilot. He is not a qualified inspector nor does he hold any balloon maintenance qualifications. He was made a safety officer by us (one of two pilot safety officers out of five pilots). He held this title for one month. He is now posing as an expert witness, judge and jury with the clear motive of destroying our company by any means he can think of. He suggests that the Civil Aviation Authority are incompetent and corrupt. He suggests that there are no competent authorities ‘with teeth’ to oversee the aviation industry.

We welcome any inspection and scrutiny and will be pleased to provide evidence and answers to any query.

ALL OF OUR BALLOONS ARE THE VERY BEST AVAILABLE AND ARE MAINTAINED TO THE
HIGHEST STANDARD. ALL OF OUR LICENSES ARE IN ORDER AND PROCEDURES AND
COMPLIANCE ABSOLUTE.

Regards


Tony Pascoe
Director
SERENGETI BALLOON SAFARIS

Email: info@balloonsafaris.com
Phone: 01225 873756 (UK number)
Arusha Office: +255 27 254 8967
Website: www.balloonsafaris.com/