Hang on a minute!
Ladies and Gentlemen, please!
Could we perhaps refrain from reaching for the rope long enough to examine the human factors aspects of this report? Rather than the presumption of guilt, we would do well to reflect on the nature of long haul operations, and the ever increasing commercial pressure applied to these pilots that lend themselves to uncharacteristic behavior.
Rest periods are minimised to the letter of the law and time off between rotations is becoming less and less, its no wonder that people make judgmental errors.
Without prejudice to the Virgin Captain, and with a raised eyebrow as to the appropriateness of security staff making unqualified judgments as to the fitness for flight of professional airmen, I would suggest that regulatory scrutiny be applied in the first instance to the pilots duty hours for the preceding months, and the number of time zones and prime REM sleep period violations he’s be forced by his employer to endure.
We’re human beings, not robots.