American man spends 6 months secretly getting his pilot’s license then takes control of plane and films his best friend’s reaction
Published on Apr 04, 2026 at 3:02 AM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Apr 01, 2026 at 7:51 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Mason Jones
Imagine spending six months to secretly obtain your pilot’s license, and then taking over an airplane without telling your friend you had done so.
That is what YouTuber ROT8 & AV8 did four years ago, after he tricked his best friend Zach in a video that, at the time of writing, had over 20 million views.
The YouTuber was even able to get the owner of the airport in on the joke to make sure it ran smoothly.
You can probably imagine just what Zach’s reaction was in the video.
This is how the pilot tricked his friend despite having his pilot’s license
Filmed in May 2021, the YouTuber had a clever ploy to fool his friend.
After spending six months trying to get his license, he kept the fact a secret from everyone, including his best friend.
In the video, he created an illusion that he had never flown the aircraft before.
To do this, the airport owner faked a phone call and told the pilot he could start the engine up while he was away.
His friend totally believed him, even to the point that he took the aircraft to the runway.
To dupe his friend, he said he would run the aircraft up to a certain RPM, and then the real pilot would come and take over.
The pilot radioed the control for permission to take off, and that was when the prank really kicked in.
How surprised was Zach as his friend took off in the plane?
“I’m just going to fly the [expletive] plane,” said the pilot.
His friend was quite surprised and nervous at that statement.
“What do you mean?!” he said as his friend taxiied out onto the runway.
It was as he powered down the runway that Zach really could not believe what he thought was happening.
But of course, the YouTuber had his license.
In the video, Zach had a cross between a grin and shock on his face and couldn’t stop laughing.
He really believed his friend had winged it.
Finally, after landing and taking off straight away with a ‘touch and go’, the YouTuber revealed everything.
After telling his friend he actually had his pilot’s license, his friend just grinned and did not stop laughing.
Now, a prank like this is certainly risky.
But it looked like it paid off with the desired effect here.
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Henry joined the Supercar Blondie team in February 2025, and since then has covered a wide array of topics ranging from EVs, American barn finds, and the odd Cold War jet. He’s combined his passion for cars with his keen interest in motorsport and his side hustle as a volunteer steam locomotive fireman at a heritage steam railway.
