I’m sorry, but if you show up impaired after getting an appropriate nights sleep (8 hours uninterrupted sleep opportunity comes to mind) you must have been pretty damned polluted when you turned out the light. The idea you can’t have a beer or a glass of wine with dinner on a layover is ridiculous. Power drinking however has no place on a layover.

Thats a bit of an old wives tail and might refer more to the legal side. It’s more of a case by case basis. There have also been many pilots relapse and still get another chance. I know one who went through the program 3 times. Self reporting and entering the program can give a pilot more options than if it is mandatory following an incident.
Alcohol is a serious drug addiction but because it’s legal is often not viewed in the same light as other addictions. Most pilots are intelligent enough to know if they have an alcohol issue but just won’t quite acknowledge it and taking that step to self report is very difficult. If you pack a bottle for a trip or feel the need to consume alcohol almost every day it might be time for some self reflection. My family has a terrible record with alcohol which has kept me cautious. Most alcoholics are blissfully unaware of the effects their drinking has on their family. Pilots at Delta are very lucky to have the HIMS program. Getting those who need it into the program is the hard part.

HIMS is a program to get an individual into recovery, keep their medical and use their certificates.

Depending how one enters HIMS at Delta there are three basic outcomes after the successful completion of treatment

Keep your job

Get fired, but get job back once you have regained medical and/or certificates

Get fired

Delta will always pay for a pilots treatment no matter which of those three circumstances.

Generally speaking, an individual entering HIMS like this falls unders the second course.

heard the same. False positive, but they had already removed her and the damage was done.

Normally I align with your world view OOfff, but on this one it comes across as a bit prickly and silly. This one really isn't misogynic. It could be argued as relevant due to the majority of pilots being male, hence the reference to gender.
Not that my opinion on this event is worth a hill of beans, but I don't see anything 'there' on this one.

I haven’t logged in here in years but I had to for this…..

False positive.

She was removed by authorities so there was no choice but to take action on the flight.

Multiple tests. Multiple negatives.

She was held an insanely long time and released.

False positive.

But the damage is done thanks to then “news”.

Except it doesn't matter at all if the pilot was male or female or minority or white. The person was intentionally not identified so other than using pronouns to describe him or her, the gender has literally no bearing on this.

Thankfully, this may have turned out to be a false positive.

sooo she’s getting a big pay day from someone

I agree that gender has no bearing on incidents like this. “Pilot” or “crew member” would have sufficed.

As an employee of a reputationally hard drinking airline, the days of old are mostly gone—but it doesn’t take much to get in trouble these days. We all know the textbook measures for the various “what if” scenarios but many still get tagged, some needlessly so.

I have empathy for these situations—in this case a lawsuit may be forthcoming.

By all means, if you need help please get it. That goes for addiction, stress, physical health etc. You are too valuable to needlessly suffer!

from who?

I can’t imagine DL would be at fault

i imagine their cops have something similar to QI which renders them immune to lawsuits. Even if they don’t, they probably have laws set up to shield them from lawsuits. The fact they didn’t identify her will probably be enough to keep them from having any liability

the press didn’t report anything that was not made public by the police.

its terrible what happened to her but odds are she is SOL on getting any kind of meaningful payment for having her reputation trashed.

Well at a minimum she’ll get a ton of RR pay for going into her day(s) off…

will she if the reason for the RR is detainment by local police?

She better since it wasn't her fault!

And she better get PAID time off to recover from the stress and trauma of the whole ordeal. Knowing how cheap flight ops is they'll just offer to personal drop her next trip without pay.

1-2-3.


filler

Wow, what is a false positive on an alcohol test? They did a breathalyzer and then a blood test? I’d imagine Delta would be out for money too. That one article said Delta, under EU rules, is out near $400k in passenger fines as well as hotel and meal fees for all passengers. Delta also has a brand to protect. Europe is pretty ridiculous, things like this only add to the stereotype. They didn’t have a way to figure this out before it turned into a few million dollar mishap and defame a Delta pilot?

Excellent. Now take nine steps, heel-to-toe, along a straight line, turn on one foot and return nine steps in the opposite direction. A subject may be impaired if they:

• Begin before the instructions are finished
• Cannot keep balance while listening to the instructions
• Do not touch heel-to-toe
• Lose balance while turning
• Stop while walking to regain balance
• Take an incorrect number of steps
• Use arms to balance

According to Hunter (recent expert on subject), alcohol is more problematic addiction than crack cocaine.

“I’m going to the hotel, I’ll contact you when I feel recovered from this incident”

Especially since international flights might have installed spares, so no cancellation.

Glad to hear, she's good with job/career.

In Sweden? I doubt it. Most especially if the offender is a person of governance.

I would sue the brakes off that company that makes faulty equipment, the police for not properly calibrating the breathalyzer… there’s negligence there.. ruined her name and possibly career

Any particular reason you’d assume you can’t get compensated for a government action shown to have been harmful and incorrect?

police departments paying millions in settlements every day to victims

Overseas?? Heck, it's pretty hard to file litigation in Canada and Sweden leans a bit more progressive than our neighbors to the north.

So no 8 hrs bottle to throttle anymore, now its 8 hrs coke to yoke.

My point was more so that Rickairs post reads “you can’t sue the state in a communist country.” Fact is if you can prove it, you are entitled to damages. It’s the law.

You are foolish to even attempt the field sobriety test. It is not designed to prove sobriety. Better call Saul!

Portable breath testing when compared to a chemical test at a hospital or a fixed breathalyzer machine at the police station are two different things. While likely not an option in this case it is wise to consider refusing any sort of field sobriety testing. Or least spend a few minutes researching the difference between a portable tester and the more accurate....and legally binding ones.

That's the fairly rare exception, not the rule. Qualified immunity tends to be the default and you have to prove otherwise.

All governments pretty much have qualified immunity in some form... the degree of that, and the remedies available to the subjects varies widely.

With that said there is a growing movement to limit qualified immunity in the US, since it is generous enough to encourage a lot of abuse.

Field sobriety testing is sketchy stuff. Refusing the FST does not trigger implied consent consequences in any state.

The FAA/DOT I believe will treat refusal as a positive? Not sure if that applies to field sobriety test as well as blood test.

This 100%. I don’t really think people realize how tight the European standards are. As I understand it, that is partly why at some shops there is a 12 hour rule as opposed to the standard FAA 8. Her blow was her blow but the first thought in my mind was not a ****faced pilot…..it was perhaps someone who miscalculated their departure time. Sadly to the internet news it’s the same thing.

Imo, yes. Roadside sobriety. Your nearest door to hims. Blow or refuse. No better $ spent than a cab from trouble. Worried about the new Lexus, have it towed. Saul bills at $400 an hour for asset nesting clients. Like you & me.

My brain hurts after trying to read that.

Then a traffic stop or fender bender shouldn’t concern you cruising home from Pancho’s. Not to say there aren’t other routes to a hims eval. Domestic abuse complaint, slugfest with a neighbor, urinating in public, ER treatment as result of injuries/illness for dubious reasons. Disclosing symptomatic depression on form 8500-8.

DUI defense firms typically have little objection representing clients with adequate ability to pay. Get a ride.

It’s actually really simple. Don’t drink and drive. If you are addicted to alcohol you might not be able to not drink. Then you need HIMS.

• Right to Compensation: If you are detained on suspicion of a crime and later acquitted, the charges are dropped, or the preliminary investigation is closed, you may be entitled to compensation. This applies even if you were detained for a short period (e.g., 24 hours) and the arrest warrant is subsequently revoked, according to the International Bar Association.
• Types of Damages: You can claim compensation for various damages resulting from the false arrest or detention, including physical harm, psychological distress, damage to reputation, and economic loss (such as lost wages).
• How to Claim: You can apply for compensation from the Swedish Crime Victim Authority (Brottsoffermyndigheten). You'll need to submit your application within a specific timeframe (generally three years from the relevant event, such as the crime being committed or the preliminary investigation being discontinued).
• Legal Action: In addition to claiming compensation from the state, you might also be able to pursue a civil lawsuit against the state if you're not satisfied with the Prosecutor General's Office decision on your compensation claim, according to EJN.

Important Note: The specifics of each case can vary, and it's essential to seek legal advice from a qualified Swedish attorney specializing in false arrest and unlawful detention cases to understand your rights and the best course of action.

Don’t drink & drive. Don’t report hung over. Amen. Hims? Simply out of the question.
https://youtu.be/8XC3Hc-rAkk?si=0cXhV_QVLCjLIQ65