I was wondering the same thing.

>80 mg/dL (>17.4 mmol/L) is considered positive for driving under the influence in most states.

.011% B.A.C.

About a quarter of the FAA limit (.04%) and a level that would be impossible to detect any impairment. Depending upon when the sample was taken, could also correspond to natural decomposition within the body after death.

I am not sure why he would have told me that. He is an Exec in the SCS Division. Maybe he meant that they could not be shipped as regular cargo, and had to be under a UPS Dangerous Goods Contract.

UPS/ICAO Battery Shipment Regs

Thanks for the correction. I guess I should have done a little more research.

Heard that UPS was restricting the placement of Lithium batteries to the lower aft cargo compartment now. Any truth to this?

Correct, after the type of trauma a crash/fire/desert temps induce the body may yield a false positive.

Several accident investigations have made this clear.

Exactly. That level is immaterial; on autopsy even some pediatric patients have low levels BAC that obviously were not drinking. Decomposition and production by microbes could get to this level, and I would read nothing into it.

If the level was 5 or 6 times that observed amount and sample obtained correctly... well, that would be a different story. Not sure if this article is free outside of university paywall:

Interpretation of postmortem alcohol concen... [Forensic Sci Int. 2005] - PubMed - NCBI

If you have ever seen what a 200g impact and a fire can do to you, it is easy to understand why the chances of a correct sample are almost nil. There is very little left to work with.

There's your problem.

That's the first I've heard of it.

It was the FO's first flight after having been released to the line from IOE. Maybe the captain thought since the FO was straight out of the school house that he was much sharper with the checklists which would sound reasonable to me.