DEA agents had seized marijuana plants during the operation but had to cool their heels while state troopers gave Elliott a ride, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Wednesday.
The June 28 operation in Union County by the federal-state Governor's Task on Drug Suppression was delayed for 90 minutes while the military-style helicopter flew Elliott to an airport in Blairsville, near his home, the newspaper reported.
``We've had a good working relationship with the governor's task force, and hopefully this will get worked out,'' DEA spokeswoman Ruth Porter-Whipple said.
This year, the state received $477,000 in federal money for the task force.
The Georgia Department of Public Safety, which is the lead agency in the task force, began an internal investigation Monday.
The patrol adopted detailed policies on helicopter use a year ago after criticism about it flying Gov. Sonny Perdue to political events and letting him take the controls of the aircraft.
Elliott, who is from Dawsonville, is a licensed pilot. He said the troopers asked him to go along on the trip and offered him a shot at the dual-control aircraft.
Elliott had dropped off a plane in Dawsonville that day and needed to return to Blairsville.
According to state records, helicopter spotters direct ground teams to marijuana plants, 12 of which were seized that day.
In 1988, Elliott was in an Air Force fighter jet that collided with another jet during simulated combat. The other plane crashed after the pilot safely ejected. The plane Elliott was in was damaged.
Elliott was flying the jet at one point during the flight but was not flying it when the collision occurred. But after the incident, the Air Force stopped offering courtesy flights to celebrities and dignitaries.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2004/7/156311