Fly Now, Pay Later

Like many flight attendants, William Conn, 30, of Miami, often took advantage of an airline practice called deadheading, in which employees hitch rides to work assigned flights in other cities. For almost a year, dressed in a Pan Am uniform, using an unauthorized ID number and traveling under the name B. Cohen, he jetted around the world on various Pan Am flights, virtually for free. As is customary, he usually pitched in to help the crew and even received letters of commendation from flight attendants and supervisors. But two months ago, a Pan Am security official, noticing that the airline's computer system had kicked out the name B. Cohen on a Miami-to-London flight as an unidentified employee, launched an investigation. On Dec. 23, the free ride ended for Cohn-Cohen when Dade County police arrested him in a Miami Pan Am office.

Cohn was charged with one count of grand theft, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. "He infiltrated Pan Am," explained Detective William Sayers. "He made a good impression. He knew the language of the profession. He served meals and drinks and fluffed pillows." Despite an obvious aptitude for the job, one Pan Am spokesman was unimpressed. Said he: "I don't think we will have any plans to hire him."