I'm a bit puzzled as to why a couple of people have criticised the author of the original article. Read his concluding (and it is indeed a conclusion that he's worked towards in the rest) comment:
"the British Airways (BA) pilot who refused to
fly because he was sleepy after a disturbed night at the hotel may have
inconvenienced a lot of passengers, but was reinforcing high standards of
air safety."
Sounds like precisely the sort of journalist you need "onside".