1,300 airline pilots were accused of tax evasion and filing fraudulent returns.

1,300 airline pilots were accused of tax evasion and filing fraudulent returns. Five pilots were chosen to represent the entire group in trial, called Test Case Petitioners. The pilots faced possible criminal prosecution and bankruptcy, and tax debts which most would never be able to discharge or pay off in their lifetimes, leaving the debt to their estates. Their credit and reputations were destroyed. The two leading lawyers for the IRS, Sims and McWade, were given bonuses for their outstanding work in prosecuting the pilots.