I tend to suspect that the dude really and truly has reformed himself, getting medical and certs back would have required some very major (and I think very sincere) tap dancing. Same for getting hired at an airline, especially a brand-name major. This wouldn't have surprised me one bit at an outsourced FFD operation, but a little surprising at B6.

But boy does it seem like a sketchy PR proposition in the pound me too era. Not to mention the probable backlash from cockpit coworkers.