This situation is not funny, however that made me laugh really hard.

 

Yeah...unfortunate situation. As the boys would say on the street corner, "it's a done dodda for him". In all sincerity, hope he's able to bounce back.



Oh man...you ain't lying!


atp

 

Too many pilots get off on it being a disease. IMO. He will likely get his job back cus he and his lawyer will argue "he has a disease". Stupid. He has a drinking problem. Has a lack of respect for his profession. And has really bad judgement.

 

Is it stupid? Technically it is a disease. It's a diagnosable condition under the DSM-IV. I think accusing him of having a lack of respect for the profession is also an error. If you look in the DSM-IV, some of the criteria for a diagnosis of dependence or abuse include addictive behavior, where the substance is the priority because of a chemical reaction that takes place in the brain, which consequently alters judgement. This change makes them chemically incapable of making a sound and reasonable decision.

You are right, he has bad judgement because it is impaired by a disease/disorder that chemically alters the brain.

And for the record, he won't "get off". He will have consequences for his actions and he will pay for his actions.

http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publicatio...-2/131-142.pdf

 

Right, it's a disease once you get caught. Before that its party time. How about not getting drunk on your overnight and going to work to fly a plane full of people!!!!

 

As someone whose life has been greatly affected/effected(never get those right) by a family member, it definitely is a disease. I've learned more than I ever wanted to know about addiction. That being said, it's a very controllable disease after treatment. That is when it takes a disciplined person to be successfully sober. Sadly many don't have the ability to stay sober. The long term success rate is pretty bad. That being said, pilots are some of the most successful of any demographic by a wide margin. From what I've witnessed the ones that get out of rehab, find a group, get a sponsor who's a pretty rigid, follow that sponsors advice (even if they don't like it) and stay away from the losers in the group they do fine. Now I don't know whether this guy is an alcoholic or just f'ed up. But anyone that thinks this is not a disease is just ignorant.

 

Having a problem with alcohol and having poor judgement do not go together.

Having a disease does not automatically give you a pass for exercising such poor judgement.

 

For those of you doubting the fact that alcoholism is a disease, read Joe Balzer's book "Flying Drunk." He was the NWA 727 F/E arrested along with the CA and FO in 1990 for operating a flight under the influence from FAR-MSP. He now flies for us (AA.) In his book he dedicates a chapter or two to the research that's been done on alcoholism. It is clearly proven that those who have a certain enzyme in the liver are very susceptible to having a drinking problem while not realizing the danger of the addiction. To you and I, avoiding a drink on the layover is no big deal - to an alcoholic, it is a VERY big deal and not so easily avoided. And once he has that one drink, it sends a signal in his brain to keep on.

Please don't make the assumption that this AE Captain was a dumbass and could have easily avoided it. If he suffers from this problem, he very well may not have known the extent of his addiction and voila. If anything, pray for him that he is able to heal and return to flying.

 

Met him at Oshkosh 09. Very nice guy, very honest about the whole situation. Good book to boot.

 

Attended a presentation by this gentleman, very powerful and convincing.

Dr. Kevin Mccauley Meth and Other Drug and Alcohol Addiction - YouTube