I can't believe what I am reading
I hold a US commercial drivers license and do long distance charter bus operations. We are FORBIDDEN to drink any alcoholic beverage from 12 hours before a trip until we park the bus and leave the yard.
That means if I do a five day three state trip I can not drink alcohol for the entire five days! Three to five day trips are not unusual and it is a pain in the behind to not enjoy a beer for five days 'cause I drink a beer before dinner, wine with dinner, and a scotch after dinner every night if I am off for the next 12 hours.
The NO ALCOHOL rule is absolutely clear at the time we accept our assignments and there is absolutely no room for exceptions.
I am only responsible for 50 people and a 18 ton bus at 65 mph - why should you pilots with so much more responsibility think you should have lower standards than we lowly bus drivers?
It is appalling that any of you can even begin to make an excuse for this guy or consider there is any plausible explanation for his behavior.
And.. because I have a commercial license I am legally drunk at .04 blood alcohol level in any state in the US. Every state, if I am give an alcohol test, will report back to my home state and I will be held to the standards of that state - no matter what the law was in the state in which I was tested.
If I fail a breathalyzer I automatically lose ALL (private and commercial) driving privileges for one year and I will be unemployable as a commercial driver for many years. If the company does hire me - their insurance company will never provide insurance.
We do get random urine and blood tests several times a year - both when we report for work and when we return from a trip. There is no room for negotiations, no room for fudging, and no pity on the part of the company, union, or other drivers.
I'd expect no less from professional pilots.