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Arkansas
Under the old state law, pilots were prohibited from flying with a blood-alcohol level of more than 0.04 percent, the cutoff established by the Federal Aviation Administration. But police could only make an arrest if the pilot was already in control of the plane, either on the ground or in the air.
Under the new law enacted this spring, it's a crime for an airline pilot to even show up at the screening checkpoint with more than 0.04 percent blood-alcohol in his system. "When a commercial pilot presents himself to the security checkpoint under the influence, it becomes a police matter," said Henderson. "It allows us to push it out of the cockpit."
In addition, the new law makes it a felony for an airline pilot who is carrying a weapon under the government's new armed pilot program to have more than 0.04 percent blood-alcohol content. That law is believed to be the first of its kind in the nation.
The incidents at Little Rock began last August, when the pilot of a US Airways Express flight to Charlotte, N.C., was stopped by screeners. The pilot registered 0.06 percent blood-alcohol, above the FAA's legal limit. His license was revoked by the FAA and he was fired by Mesa Air, which operated the US Airways Express flight.
This spring, the TSA issued guidelines to screeners around the country, telling them to alert their supervisors if they see a pilot they believe is impaired. Some screeners have complained that they weren't hired to watch for intoxicated pilots, and some pilots feel that the TSA should stick to looking out for terrorists instead of passing judgment on whether the pilots are fit to fly.