Another drunk pilot
 

Flight Delayed When Pilot Kept From Getting On Plane - Omaha News Story - KETV Omaha


I hope its not true, but it probably is.

He deserves a seat in the airbus.

Did they give him a sobriety test? I don't think so. The news reporter repeatedly stating he was drunk without any evidence is irresponsible, whether he was drunk or not.

I think they did. I was deadheading through MKE today and had 2 passengers from the flight say the cops pulled him out of the cockpit. I don't think they pull you out of the cockpit and tell you to just go sober up...

This CNN story says explicitly that he failed a BAC test.

Suspected drunk pilot kept off Omaha flight - CNN.com

No worries, he'll be thrown into HIMS and ALPA will have his job back pronto...

Yes. Hopefully he will get help. Sounds like he needs it. Bummer there's not a program for whats wrong with you.

You mean Teamsters will get his job back?

No. He Wont. It does not work that way. Once you step foot on the aircraft, you are considered to have intentions of operating the aircraft. If you cross that line impaired, you are toast. You will face criminal charges, the Faa WILL revoke your license and medical, he will be fired, game over. You do not get the chance to enter the program after crossing this line and getting caught.

"""""The pilot did make it through the checkpoint and he was met by our police officers near the gate of departure," Martin said.""""

Even though he did not step foot on the aircraft (per the CNN report) his INTENTION was to step foot onto the aircraft. He's toast.

Is there really some point to cross here when you are considered to have the intention to step foot on the aircraft?

It would seem to me that if he got dressed in his uniform, didn't mention his condition, rode in the hotel van to the airport, passed through security, and made it to the gate - - - all of those would count as an 'intention to step foot on the aircraft'.

I'm asking. Would it make a difference if security stopped rather than having made it through to the gate? Maybe the way I'm looking at it - 'intention to step onto the aircraft' was just a poor choice of words - in a legal sense in any matter.

USMCFLYR

agreed. I was borrowing words from the previous post. When he awoke, took a ****, put on his uniform and climbed into that van, his flying days were over (if he got caught) Intention to fly began when he straightened his tie. And yes, I am a lawyer. I play one on T.V.

Very Nice! :)

I'm not a lawyer. I dont speak legalise. What I do know is that if he blew over .04, he's toast. In order to get into hims or a similar rehab program, he would have had to self disclose. You have a very very hard hill to climb if you get caught. Its not impossible. Its been done. But it is very expensive and a very long process.

Wrong union, not ALPA but IBT!
Gangstas to the rescue!

Hope she was worth it. DOH!!

I bet the van driver who snitched feels like a hero right now. And don't worry I'm not saying he is a jerk for telling on the suspected drunk pilot or anything, nor am I saying to turn the other cheek.

With this driver being the one who called it in, I bet this week 50 other hotel van drivers wanna be the next hero of the day and call the cops on crews they might suspect so they themselves can feel heroic. Just like TSA screeners love to be the hero who nails the next drunk pilot.

This scenario should be used in every shuttle driver tipping thread for the rest of time. Might have saved his/her career for a dollar.

Historically, crossing the threshold of the aircraft is used legally as the declaration of intention to fly... not any of the other mindless speculation from this thread. If you cross the threshold of the aircraft, you have no chance of getting admitted into a HIMS program. Up until that point your career still may be saved.

Perhaps not at THAT airline, but at mine and many others, IF he does the right thing and gets help he WILL be back.

Now that's funny +1

Security won't stop you...there's no law against going through a TSA checkpoint drunk, even in uniform.

What they will do is discretely notify the cops...they WANT to pull you out of the airplane, otherwise they can't charge you with anything. Kind of like a drunk walking to parking lot is not a DUI.

There was a notable case of a drunk pilot who got stopped at the gate before boarding the plane. The cops tried to give him a sobriety test and he said on what grounds? They pondered this and realized that they had no grounds...yet.

They notified the company, who tried to fire the pilot. But that didn't stick either because he claimed that he had realized his condition and was planning on using the station phone to call in unfit. They couldn't disprove that, so they had to keep him (presumably got a no-show, but one of those is not grounds for firing).

The whole problem here was that the guy probably didn't tip the van driver...all you cheap bastards take note.

Whole thing is a shame.

Interesting. After I posed this question to a local prosecutor, I got a strange look and was offered the scenario of "intent to commit murder" only involves the planning type of answer. You don't actually have to pull the trigger on the gun and find out that it has blanks.

As far as the van driver comment - yes - let's try and say that the van driver did something wrong or even insinuate that other van drivers are going to be getting up close and personal *just hoping* to smell alcohol. I'm sure that a pilot who got into a van with an intoxicated van driver would just turn the other cheek too or maybe we could expect every pilot to save his or her crew from the next intoxicated van driver they come across. Really?:confused:

If the facts are as they are currently being presented; there is only one person to point the finger at in this scenario.

USMCFLYR

This sounds like a scenario that I prosecutor could play with. As we all know - the old 'I'm just getting in the car to sleep it off defense' died along time ago. I wouldn't want to hang my hat on that defense of the pilot you presented on a jury trial. Common sense just might prevail.

USMCFLYR

RAH position is zero tolerance on this. BAC of .02 is the Company minimum.

Also, It was my understanding that as a crew member, once you board an aircraft, law enforcement "jurisdiction" moves from Local to Federal. Local police can request you deplane, but TSA or the FBI has jurisdiction and can forcibly remove you. Not sure on that, but I remember witnessing a FA tell an Alleghney County cop in PIT to pound sand (pre-9/11) when he requested her to deplane for setting off a door/gate alarm. He threatened all kinds of crap, but she wagged her finger in his face and told him to get off the plane...and he did. It was cool.

and by Minimum you mean maximum?

This story is sad. I have seen so many crew members get too smashed up until just a few hours before departure then brag about it. Its stupid. If you have to get that smashed all the time you should probably think about cutting back. It's really not that fun anyway.

I'm glad I don't work at CHQ. I'm a crappy pilot sober, and over .02 would make me downright dangerous.

There's not one, but three things at play here:

1. Possible Felony conviction - If he has a good lawyer, no problem here.

2. FAA revocation of certificates - Toast.

3. Termination from CHQ - Toast, but appealed by IBT. Still Toast.

So there you have it. Double Toast. At least he saved a buck by not tipping the driver.

Don't forget some folks have been getting jail time for this.......6 mo. as somebody's new date doesn't sound like fun to me.

Best post of the thread IMO. Beats the hell out of piling on the guy. Substance abuse absolutely sucks. I've been through it with more than one of my family members. It's the reason I don't drink. There's no rationalizing it, and there's no excusing it, but dogpileing one of our own just to play "holier-than-thou" is a cheap shot. I doubt anyone would be ganging up on the guy if he'd hung himself in his hotel room out of depression. Sickness is sickness. Lay off, keyboard warriors.

Lock the thread after the post above as it says it all.

http://www.lolcats.com/images/u/07/2...lr13r010th.jpg




To your other points- he will have to go through a lot of treatment and such before he can get his job back, but it still will be salvageable since he did not cross the threshold of the jet... and he will have to admit he has a problem (hence the treatment thing). All is contingent on the latter.

No treatment, no come to Jesus moment, no job.

The "crossing the threshold of the airplane" term has long running legal precedence in these sorts of situations. There are other precedents that this FO will have to follow to perhaps ever see the seat of an airplane or airliner again.

The van driver just did what any other citizen would do if put in that situation- who in their right mind would let someone go endanger lives of others? Not tipping, while for whatever reason has seen increased prevalence among the regional guys (pages and pages of excuses and hoops that the van driver has jump through have been discussed ad nauseum on here), but that has nothing to do with the fact that he reported unfit.

After reading this and other threads tonight, I need a drink.

I don't care if he has a sickness. This industry cannot tolerate this kind of sickness. He can get better in some other line of work.

I wonder if the other crew members will share some of the responsibility. If the van driver noticed, then I highly doubt the others didn't. I wonder where you would draw the line especially when you like your fellow crew. Like the above poster said, we really don't need this kind of publicity. No wonder management thinks they can get away treating us however they want since a few of us behaving certain ways that gives the rest of us a bad stereotype. Most of the pilots I've met or worked with are real professionals and awesome people.

I feel bad and all for another pilot to work so hard to get here and just throw it away, but I rather see him/her in another field than to ever fly with that person or even worse be commuting in the back.

Just lay off the booze when working, simple. Recently had a new hire get canned for failing a breathalyzer after a DEADHEAD random. Times have changed; everyone should be a "slam/clicker", its not worth it anymore. Save the cold suds for your time off

Sheer ignorance here.

There's a "former" serial child abuser that wants to babysit your kids, he has had treatment, so I guess you'll be good with that? After all, it's only a "sickness".

Hell, we had a guy do Coke in the Lav while in flight. The FO figured it out needless to say he's at CAL now, so I would bet my left nut he gets his job back. I don't need it anymore.

Not worth it anymore. I'll admit we used to party it up but now a days your toast. You cant wait to do it till you get home or at the very least in your car and on the ride home your not gona last long. I wouldn't give the TSA the satisfaction, rather do it right and let one of our good Troopers get me if i'm going out.