salon.com/news/feature/2009/ … _repo_man/
June 6, 2009 | It was snowing hard when the bank called Nick Popovich. They needed to grab a Gulfstream in South Carolina now. Not tomorrow. Tonight.
Jeez, think they peppered that one up a bit.
I saw a repo of a Citation in BNA about 3 weeks ago, guy came in to Atlantic, had the plane pulled out, preflighted (with his key) ordered fuel and put it on his credit card, filed a flight plan, went out with another guy and flew away. He even got his Atlantic Rewards which now SUCK by the way.
I’m not saying they’re all that easy, but c’mon, neo-Nazi’s guarding an airplane with shotguns in South Carolina!!! What airport, he has a duty to tell us where that was! Sneaking by “security” at MIA, does that mean carrying your own ice out to the airplane, and giving the line guy 5 bucks telling him you got it from here, or would it even matter if you told the girls at the desk what you were doing. On second thought, at Signature MIA, I’ve felt a lot like James Bond, when I just get out to the plane, and get gas within a four hour period…
I’m sure “Frankie’s” MD-80 engines were not ready to fall off the plane, and I’m sure that that night in prison was just a really crappy Best Western.
Shenanigans I say, and if this guy is telling the truth, the FAA should pull his certificates for endangering the people on the ground below him what with all those bullet holes in the planes…
Comandeering a catering truck? Being loaded into luggage bays? Shootouts with neo-nazi freaks?? Remote jungle outposts in Southeast Asia? Haitian jail cells? I’m born and raised in South Carolina - have lived all over the entire state in my 30 years and have never heard of anything close to the such. I seem to recall reading a story about this Popovich repo character somewhere in the past, but the last time I read this story, I think it was before Oliver Stone got ahold of and repainted the storyline. Since when does a bank call you and tell you that you didn’t ask for enough money for a job you were hired to do? $145k to repo a Cessna 310? If anything, the FAA should pull his certificates for being a compulsive liar. There’s no telling what else this man has done a bad job of fabricating.
The dude is marketing himself. I’ll bet he gets a few more repo’s from that article.
I call shenanigans on his story…I have been involved with the repossession of six large cabin jet aircraft in the last year. In two cases we had the local FBO tow the aircraft to a predesignated safe hanger on the field and bury them in the back with new locks. No big deal 
Has anybody ever heard of the cable TV show operation repo? It’s a faux “reality” show where they repo peoples cars using highly illegal tactic, but its scripted.
Like the show, this story may have been glorified for entertainment purposes. I agree, some things mentioned are a stretch.
I started reading the article, expecting to see facts, till I saw this:
There was just one detail: No one had told Popovich about the heavily armed white supremacist militia that would be guarding the aircraft when he arrived.
Then, my friends, I knew I had to break out the popcorn because I was about to read two pages full of action-filled fiction (read: BS).
It toned down on the second page but it’s still bad.
Anybody else notice the phrase “707 jumbo jet” (page 2, 2nd paragraph)?
I don’t know about him getting repo’s from that article, but he might get an offer for some Lifetime story of the week out of it. Even if, Lifetime would be getting ripped off about as much as whatever bank would pay $145k to repo a Cessna 310…
Interesting read nonetheless.
huh? How come the FAA doesn’t seem to notice? Bizjet on a cross-state flight at night with no lights? …and nothing happens to this guy’s tickets? Wow. That’s Impressive. Not sure if I “could be able to do that.” 
You mean act like them?
I swear to God, I’ll pistol whip the next guy who says shenanigans!
Whip yourself!
Oh no! I have a suspicion dami will interject here.
Yeah! Do ya have to use the word shenanigans? Cant they use some other word in place of shenanigans? Da word shenanigans is jus annoyin innit mate? Anyway, off to my usual shenanigans.
Cheers.
I looked at every Popovich in the FAA pilot database, and there’s not a one with the credentials to fly the planes described in the article (most of which require a unique type certificate.) So are we to believe that this cowboy just hops on board and flies planes in which he’s got no training nor license to fly?
If so, I hope the FAA yanks his certificates and grounds him where he belongs. Such disregard for safety would be appalling, if true.
Maybe that’s an assumed name…like a spy.
Alright, alright…enough of the shenanigans…
His “real” last name is probably Crockoshich…
If this cull were real, why has no-one that matters heard of him? Otherwise, we should all be queuing up to purchase our Captain Popovich: Super-Duper Repo-Man underwear to show the world how we all strive to be just like him. 
(No… that feels wrong just thinking about it!)
Any other ferry pilots out there who self-identify with the title “repo man”? No, I didn’t think so.
Maybe when he gets his tow truck down off the blocks and puts the wheels back on… 