Air India Director Flight Ops fails breathalyser
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Air India Ops Director Blows Positive Again Before Flight to LHR
He was about to operate a B-788 DEL-LHR.
By Promit Mukherjee
MUMBAI (Reuters) - A senior pilot who is also director of operations for Air India, and has had responsibility for flight safety and training, said he was told by the carrier he failed two breathalyzer tests on Sunday before a flight to London from New Delhi.
It is the second time Arvind Kathpalia, who is also on the loss-making airline's board, has been in trouble over alcohol tests. He was suspended for three months in 2017 for allegedly refusing to take breathalyzer tests.
Kathpalia told Reuters in an interview by phone that he would contest the results and claimed they were related to internal feuding within the state-owned company.
According to a description for the operation director's job when Kathpalia got appointed in June 2017, he is responsible for flight operations, ground operations, and flight safety and training operations.
It is unclear if those remain the job specifications.
Air India declined to comment for this article.
Kathpalia failed two breathalyzer tests on Sunday and was declared unfit to fly, according to a pre-flight medical examination report for alcohol, posted on the website of news portal India Today.
Kathpalia, who denies he had been drinking, corroborated the results of the breathalyzer and said he was tested twice in a span of 20 minutes, adding that the second test's reading was higher than the first.
"It was 1:30 in the afternoon, only a bloody stark raving alcoholic is bloody drunk at 1:30 in the afternoon," Kathpalia said. "I am going to contest this."
He said that at Air India "everyone is fighting with everyone," and that he has been targeted.
In 2017, Kathpalia was suspended for three months when he had allegedly refused to take breathalyzer tests before and after his flight between Bengaluru and New Delhi and back in January 2017, according to a court document available on law portal Indiakanoon.
https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2018-11-11/air-india-operations-director-stopped-from-piloting-flight-after-failing-breath-tests
Documentation of the latest breath tests from NDTV.com :
https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/senior-air-india-pilot-found-drunk-another-skips-test-both-grounded-1945707
Air India Operations Director Stopped From Piloting Flight After Failing Breath Tests
Nov. 11, 2018, at 1:42 p.m.
Air India Operations Director Stopped From Piloting Flight After Failing Breath TestsMUMBAI (Reuters) - A senior pilot who is also director of operations for Air India, and has had responsibility for flight safety and training, said he was told by the carrier he failed two breathalyzer tests on Sunday before a flight to London from New Delhi.
It is the second time Arvind Kathpalia, who is also on the loss-making airline's board, has been in trouble over alcohol tests. He was suspended for three months in 2017 for allegedly refusing to take breathalyzer tests.
Kathpalia told Reuters in an interview by phone that he would contest the results and claimed they were related to internal feuding within the state-owned company.
According to a description for the operation director's job when Kathpalia got appointed in June 2017, he is responsible for flight operations, ground operations, and flight safety and training operations.
It is unclear if those remain the job specifications.
Air India declined to comment for this article.
Kathpalia failed two breathalyzer tests on Sunday and was declared unfit to fly, according to a pre-flight medical examination report for alcohol, posted on the website of news portal India Today.
Kathpalia, who denies he had been drinking, corroborated the results of the breathalyzer and said he was tested twice in a span of 20 minutes, adding that the second test's reading was higher than the first.
"It was 1:30 in the afternoon, only a bloody stark raving alcoholic is bloody drunk at 1:30 in the afternoon," Kathpalia said. "I am going to contest this."
He said that at Air India "everyone is fighting with everyone," and that he has been targeted.
In 2017, Kathpalia was suspended for three months when he had allegedly refused to take breathalyzer tests before and after his flight between Bengaluru and New Delhi and back in January 2017, according to a court document available on law portal Indiakanoon.
https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2018-11-11/air-india-operations-director-stopped-from-piloting-flight-after-failing-breath-tests
Documentation of the latest breath tests from NDTV.com :
https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/senior-air-india-pilot-found-drunk-another-skips-test-both-grounded-1945707
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Air India Director Flight Ops fails breathalyser
Air India Director (Ops) failed breathalyser an hour before he was scheduled to operate AI 111 DHI - LHR. He is also a member of the Board of Air India.Incredible India. As they say here.
Yup, you could not make this up.
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From the article:-
Glad they've got their priorities straight there.
While drunk driving is a criminal offence in India under the Motor Vehicles Act, reporting for flying duty with alcohol in blood isnt a criminal offence under the Indian Aircraft Act.
Glad they've got their priorities straight there.
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It's mind boggling what this airline, or for the matter of fact, the country could allow an outright cheater (In tempering his medical records) and with wilful violation (skipping an alcohol test) to become the Director of Flight Ops with the flag carrier.
Someone has lots of explaining to do.
Someone has lots of explaining to do.
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Not a big deal in India perhaps but the DGCA has pulled his license for three years this time (it was three months for the failed by refusal alcohol test earlier in the year):
In the case of Air India pilot Capt. Arvind Kathpalia being detected BA (Breath Analyser Test) positive yesterday, the privileges of his licence have been suspended for a period of three years: Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)
https://www.indiatoday.in/india/stor...679-2018-11-12
Air India pilot found drunk before takeoff suspended for 3 years
Rule 24 of the Aircraft Rules prohibits crew members from consuming any alcoholic drink 12 hours before the start of a flight.
UPDATED: November 12, 2018 13:44 ISTIn the case of Air India pilot Capt. Arvind Kathpalia being detected BA (Breath Analyser Test) positive yesterday, the privileges of his licence have been suspended for a period of three years: Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)
https://www.indiatoday.in/india/stor...679-2018-11-12
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13:30... positive in the early afternoon... damn... a few cups of whiskey and water for breakfast.. breakfast of champions. lucky he not in LHR, like the japanese pilot.. locked up..
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well he's had his license suspended for three years now, and his position as D/Ops is under review. And the Indian press are giving Air India a good kicking this morning.
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Kudos for the airport staff to actually follow thru and report that a senior pilot reported for duty badly over the limit. Old air India SOP in such cases would have been: "sir, you are clearly not feeling well today, how about you go home and let the standby flight crew fly today."
The fact that the intricate details have been leaked to the press indicates that some people in the organisation want him out.
The fact that the intricate details have been leaked to the press indicates that some people in the organisation want him out.
