Those TSA guys are smelling alcohol on the pilots' breath again:
Chris Saldaña, Reporter
Airline Captain Arrested at McCarran Airport
(Jan. 13) -- A pilot scheduled to fly a plane out of Las Vegas was arrested after a TSA screener smelled alcohol on his breath. The pilot was also in possession of a weapon. He is a member of the Federal Flight Deck Officers, a program sponsored by the TSA that allows pilots to carry weapons.
Captain Oliver Reason was taken into custody after that TSA screener notified Metro Police. Metro arrived at the plane, conducted a breathalyzer, and realized Captain Reason's blood alcohol level was above the legal flight limit.
He was scheduled to operate the flight out of Las Vegas to Atlanta. That flight was cancelled and passengers were re-accommodated on later flights.
Eyewitness News did talk to Air Tran, the airline Captain Reason works for, they say Captain Reason is suspended as the investigation continues, but add, that Air Tran has a zero-tolerance when it comes to pilots under the influence.
As well, the TSA has suspended Captain Reason from his duties as a Federal Flight Deck Officer.
The legal limit of blood alcohol level for a pilot to fly is anything under .04. The FAA sets this limit.
http://www.klastv.com/Global/story.a...2&nav=168YVBXz
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AirTran Pilot Charged With Drunkenness
From Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — An armed AirTran Airways pilot was charged with operating an aircraft under the influence after a federal screener at McCarran International Airport smelled alcohol on his breath, authorities said Thursday.
Las Vegas police arrested Oliver Paul Reason Jr., 37, in the cockpit of the AirTran plane shortly after he passed through a checkpoint Wednesday night, according to the Transportation Security Administration, police and the airline.
Orlando, Fla.-based AirTran Holdings Inc. issued a statement Thursday saying the passenger airline followed its procedures to ensure that the Atlanta-bound aircraft was held at the gate.
"The captain neither took command of the aircraft nor was the aircraft operated in any manner," the airline said. The pilot has been suspended from his duties as a federal flight deck officer, which had allowed him to carry the firearm, the TSA said.
A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman said that if it found that the pilot, who has worked for AirTran since 1994, was intoxicated on the job, he would be banned from flying.
http://www.latimes.com/business/care...siness-careers
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Pilot Arrested on AirTran Flight
Police officers boarded an Atlanta-bound AirTran flight in Las Vegas early Thursday morning where they arrested a 38-year-old pilot after a screener smelled alcohol on his breath.
Pilot Oliver Reason Jr., is suspected of having a blood alcohol level above the legal flight limit.
“The Las Vegas Police Department did escort the captain from the aircraft and performed a Breathalyzer test. It is our understanding the captain failed the Breathalyzer test,” said Tad Hutcheson of AirTran Airways.
Though Reason never touched the controls, he has been charged with the operation of an aircraft while under the influence.
"At no point was the flight under the captain's command," Hutcheson said.
The Orlando-based airline subsequently cancelled Flight 1780 destined from McCarran International to Hartsfield-Jackson and removed all of the 64 passengers from the plane. Other flight accommodations were made.
The ordeal started just after midnight when a Transportation Security Administration screener reported smelling alcohol when the pilot passed by. Police were then notified and went to the gate, only to find out Reason had already boarded the plane. He was arrested in the cockpit.
“He had to check in with a local law enforcement official at the TSA and that is precisely where he was caught,” Hutcheson said. “Our multi-step safety protocol system worked, it caught the captain before he assumed control of the aircraft.”
AirTran officials said Reason was a member of the Federal Flight Deck Officer Program, run by the TSA, which allowed him to carry a weapon.
A spokesperson for AirTran said the airline immediately contacted the Federal Aviation Administration about the incident. The FAA has made a medical certification suspension and started an emergency review.
Reason has been suspended indefinitely pending the investgations by AirTran and the FAA.
http://www.11alive.com/news/news_art...?storyid=57426