I knew it was a joke. As for “standards”.....what people do on their own free time is no concern of mine. Don’t show up influenced to work, and don’t operate a vehicle. Beyond that, not my concern.

 

I agree. That said, the FAA most certainly disagrees with us. God help you if they catch wind of anything even remotely related to alcohol dependency/abuse. It is a world of pain.

 

But that would entail doing something stupid in public like being arrested for DUI or public intoxication which they would obviously find out anyway through the NDR.

 

Nope. It’s that medical side that gets you. The 8500-8 that is a felony for lying on. They’ve also begun scouring insurance clearinghouse and other gov (DoD, VA, etc) databases to find the liars, strip them of their certificates, and prosecute them in federal court. Gotta tell the truth.

I personally know someone who was a passenger in a vehicle after a night of heavy drinking. He did the right thing and got a ride home. They were involved in a motor vehicle accident, and he lost consciousness. ER docs did the standard labs, to include BAC (I guess to make sure there weren’t any interactions with the meds they were administering) and it came back just under 0.20.

He had some fairly significant injuries and had to submit the hospital documentation for a special issuance. FAA saw the BAC and immediately determined it to be an indication of alcohol dependency/abuse. Cue the pain train.

I know someone else who never had any legal or employment issues with drinking, but it started to have some personal/family consequences. He voluntarily sought treatment. FAA treated him just like a guy with a 0.28 BAC who hit a van full of nuns and babies—for doing the right thing.

A stupid or illegal act is absolutely not required to end up subject to a 12-18 month loss of medical, tens of thousands of dollars in expenses, and 5-6 years of follow-on monitoring and daily ‘recovery activities’. If I could shout this from the rooftops, I would. It has such a profound and horrific impact on professional aviators.

 

He's right, if the FAA sniffs heavy alcohol use, you're going for a ride on the HIMS wagon (without your medical for a good while). It doesn't matter how they find out, and it's also correct that you have to report anything like clinical intervention for dependency.

Also... know a guy who's soon-to-be-ex played the abuse card: he came over, yelled at me, slapped me, kicked my cat, smashed stuff up, and oh yeah he was drunk. All total BS, and it all went away real quick. All except that part about being drunk... he wasn't because he doesn't. But denial is a sign of abuse, so off he went to HIMS.

 

That's why I like to drink only at home especially on game day. Got a big screen TV. The liquor is cheaper and I'm the only obnoxious drunk I have to deal with.

 

If what you say in your first sentence is true though, over half (or close) of all pilots would fit the mold then. Just stop by the hotel bar at 9:00 after a long day of a NH class after studying systems, or in their room with the books and a bottle of Gin to know what I mean.

There HAS to be a lot more to what you say in your 2nd paragraph. They can't just haul you off to HIMS without corroborating evidence from a medical or legal professional. Kind of like that situation where a pax jokes about you being drunk, remove yourself and go get tested, blow a big fat zero %, and get back to work. No one believes the pax, but you clear yourself.

 

I like your style! Smart move, too

 

Yes. And that’s why I wish I could shout this from the rooftops. The DSM-V criteria for alcohol use disorder would include the majority of the pilot group. It’s exceptionally broad.

 

So if we dunk you in water for 10 minutes and you drown it proves you're not a witch?