Delta FO Alledgedly Tests Drunk at ORF
jetsy
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: US for now
Posts: 524
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Lufthansa bad boys
HELSINKI (Reuters) - Two Lufthansa pilots have tested positive for alcohol consumption last month after crew members alerted police shortly before the flight was due to take off from Helsinki, Finnish authorities have said.
Prosecutor Juha-Mikko Hamalainen said on Friday the tests showed some alcohol in the pilots' blood, but declined to say how much.
"Under Finnish law, they could face either a fine or imprisonment of up to two years," Hamalainen told Reuters. He said he expected the investigation to end next week.
International regulations prohibit pilots and flight attendants from flying within eight hours of consuming alcohol, while Lufthansa, along with most other airlines, has set a twelve hour restriction.
Lufthansa spokesman Michael Lamberty said the men, both German, had already left the airline after getting the blood test results.
"In this profession, you can't get away with this...We did not fire them, but they left the company. They won't fly for Lufthansa anymore," Lamberty said.
He said this was first such case he had heard of involving German pilots.
source: http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle...toryID=1987571
Prosecutor Juha-Mikko Hamalainen said on Friday the tests showed some alcohol in the pilots' blood, but declined to say how much.
"Under Finnish law, they could face either a fine or imprisonment of up to two years," Hamalainen told Reuters. He said he expected the investigation to end next week.
International regulations prohibit pilots and flight attendants from flying within eight hours of consuming alcohol, while Lufthansa, along with most other airlines, has set a twelve hour restriction.
Lufthansa spokesman Michael Lamberty said the men, both German, had already left the airline after getting the blood test results.
"In this profession, you can't get away with this...We did not fire them, but they left the company. They won't fly for Lufthansa anymore," Lamberty said.
He said this was first such case he had heard of involving German pilots.
source: http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle...toryID=1987571
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Rockytop, Tennessee, USA
Posts: 5,898
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like
on
1 Post
>>Just that the hell DOES an Airline pilot do if he loses his licence?
He hires an attorney and goes to rehab:
___________________________
On March 9, 1990, Northwest pilot Norman Lyle Prouse saw, as he later put it, "the end of my career ahead of me." The previous evening, an anonymous tipster had called the local Federal Aviation Administration office to report that Prouse and his crew were tossing back drink after drink at the Speak Easy lounge in a Minnesota suburb of Fargo, N.D. -- even though they were scheduled to fly a plane to Minneapolis at 6:30 the following morning. The FAA's "bottle-to-throttle" rule prohibits drinking within eight hours of take-off, so when they arrived at the airport, the men were met by an FAA inspector. The inspector was concerned by their bloodshot eyes and alcoholic breath -- not to mention the deep gash on Prouse's forehead. But the inspector mistakenly believed he lacked the authority to stop the crew from flying the plane, a Boeing 727 with 58 passengers on board.
Prouse took off in sleet and rain and landed in Minneapolis without incident. There the crew was met by more investigators who conducted blood tests. The crew swore they had had only a few drinks the night before and left the bar by 8:30 at the latest. But lab tests proved otherwise. Prouse had a blood level of .13 percent -- higher than both the FAA's .04 limit for pilots and the .10 level Minnesota uses to define drunk driving. It turned out that Prouse had not left the bar until 11:30, by which time he had knocked off between 15 and 19 rum and cokes and fallen off his chair and cut his head. Prouse, you see, was an alcoholic.
Prouse immediately entered rehab and hired a lawyer [as did the America West pilots in MIA]. The aviation press was incensed at the many rationalizations offered in Prouse's defense -- particularly the argument that, after all, he had landed the plane safely [he claimed his Native American ancestry made him disposed to alcoholism, that as an alcoholic he was less affected than a non-alcoholic by the booze]. They had a point. After all, the true test of safety in the air is not whether you can manage the long boring stretches, but whether you're ready for the unexpected. The judge was equally unimpressed with Prouse's arguments and sentenced him to more than a year in prison.
But Prouse's pessimism about his career prospects proved unwarranted. That's because the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects alcoholics who enter rehab. Although Northwest could have tried to take shelter under an exception, it chose to bow to the spirit of the law. Northwest rehired Prouse as soon as he was released from jail. And in July 1995 the company quietly confirmed that Prouse had returned to flying passenger jets [he retired from NWA as a 744 captain]...
http://walterolson.com/articles/washmdrink.html
______________________________________
Captain Prouse was fully pardoned by Clinton in the infamous last minute list as Bush II took power:
http://news.corporate.findlaw.com/hd...e012001egc.pdf
He hires an attorney and goes to rehab:
___________________________
On March 9, 1990, Northwest pilot Norman Lyle Prouse saw, as he later put it, "the end of my career ahead of me." The previous evening, an anonymous tipster had called the local Federal Aviation Administration office to report that Prouse and his crew were tossing back drink after drink at the Speak Easy lounge in a Minnesota suburb of Fargo, N.D. -- even though they were scheduled to fly a plane to Minneapolis at 6:30 the following morning. The FAA's "bottle-to-throttle" rule prohibits drinking within eight hours of take-off, so when they arrived at the airport, the men were met by an FAA inspector. The inspector was concerned by their bloodshot eyes and alcoholic breath -- not to mention the deep gash on Prouse's forehead. But the inspector mistakenly believed he lacked the authority to stop the crew from flying the plane, a Boeing 727 with 58 passengers on board.
Prouse took off in sleet and rain and landed in Minneapolis without incident. There the crew was met by more investigators who conducted blood tests. The crew swore they had had only a few drinks the night before and left the bar by 8:30 at the latest. But lab tests proved otherwise. Prouse had a blood level of .13 percent -- higher than both the FAA's .04 limit for pilots and the .10 level Minnesota uses to define drunk driving. It turned out that Prouse had not left the bar until 11:30, by which time he had knocked off between 15 and 19 rum and cokes and fallen off his chair and cut his head. Prouse, you see, was an alcoholic.
Prouse immediately entered rehab and hired a lawyer [as did the America West pilots in MIA]. The aviation press was incensed at the many rationalizations offered in Prouse's defense -- particularly the argument that, after all, he had landed the plane safely [he claimed his Native American ancestry made him disposed to alcoholism, that as an alcoholic he was less affected than a non-alcoholic by the booze]. They had a point. After all, the true test of safety in the air is not whether you can manage the long boring stretches, but whether you're ready for the unexpected. The judge was equally unimpressed with Prouse's arguments and sentenced him to more than a year in prison.
But Prouse's pessimism about his career prospects proved unwarranted. That's because the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects alcoholics who enter rehab. Although Northwest could have tried to take shelter under an exception, it chose to bow to the spirit of the law. Northwest rehired Prouse as soon as he was released from jail. And in July 1995 the company quietly confirmed that Prouse had returned to flying passenger jets [he retired from NWA as a 744 captain]...
http://walterolson.com/articles/washmdrink.html
______________________________________
Captain Prouse was fully pardoned by Clinton in the infamous last minute list as Bush II took power:
http://news.corporate.findlaw.com/hd...e012001egc.pdf
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Oxford(ish)
Posts: 45
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Christ...
you could argue that, after rehab, he might be a perfectly sober, sane competant pilot. you might even have a point. But i'd think twice about booking a Northwest ticket, if that's the standard they work to.
you could argue that, after rehab, he might be a perfectly sober, sane competant pilot. you might even have a point. But i'd think twice about booking a Northwest ticket, if that's the standard they work to.
I had an arsehole transplant but the arsehole rejected me, which is why I write such rubbish
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: New York, NY, USA
Posts: 113
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
GordonBurford
Gordon;
Not exactly what your dig about not flying NWA meant but please don't blame the minority for the majority.
I've flown, and continue to fly Northwest along with most other U.S / British carriers without any worries.
Me thinks you need to change your attitude mate. Most pilots are upstanding, decent, fair-minded people like I am.
Andy
Not exactly what your dig about not flying NWA meant but please don't blame the minority for the majority.
I've flown, and continue to fly Northwest along with most other U.S / British carriers without any worries.
Me thinks you need to change your attitude mate. Most pilots are upstanding, decent, fair-minded people like I am.
Andy
I got pulled over on my motorcycle some years back now. On that occasion I was doubling a good friend of mine, and I can now say that I was speeding, not by a lot mind you, however this brought me some unwanted attention from the local constabulary. I managed to talk my way out of the ticket as he had no proof (he was right) as a matter of course however he did the customary random breath test.
I had not been drinking any alcohol whatsoever, no Lemon Lime and bitters, no old jamacian rum and raisin chocolate not pudding....
I had however just eaten a chicken and mayonaise roll, for which there was a lot of mayonaise in the roll. You could hav knocked me over with a feather when I was told that I registered 0.03 (When I had my provisional licence in New South Wales, Australia I was only allowed 0.02)
I had just recently gone back to school to study, and during this time I had studied chemistry. I learnt about the ethanoate ion and how (from what I remember) one end of this ion is exactly the same as the same end of the ethanol ion. the ethanoate ion is present in vinegar which is present in mayonaise which was present in my mouth at the time of the RBT.
I am no expert on this subject but I can only suspect it attatched to the potassium permangenate in the hanheld testing unit and simulated an alcohol content......I am not sure of this.
All I did was rinse my mouthout at a nearby tap and do the test again immediately afterweards providing a reading of 0.00. Much the same as you might do with alcoholic breath spray.
It wouldn't take any weight to court of course because the issue is too easily resolved, just thought I would add my two cents worth.
Willie
I had not been drinking any alcohol whatsoever, no Lemon Lime and bitters, no old jamacian rum and raisin chocolate not pudding....
I had however just eaten a chicken and mayonaise roll, for which there was a lot of mayonaise in the roll. You could hav knocked me over with a feather when I was told that I registered 0.03 (When I had my provisional licence in New South Wales, Australia I was only allowed 0.02)
I had just recently gone back to school to study, and during this time I had studied chemistry. I learnt about the ethanoate ion and how (from what I remember) one end of this ion is exactly the same as the same end of the ethanol ion. the ethanoate ion is present in vinegar which is present in mayonaise which was present in my mouth at the time of the RBT.
I am no expert on this subject but I can only suspect it attatched to the potassium permangenate in the hanheld testing unit and simulated an alcohol content......I am not sure of this.
All I did was rinse my mouthout at a nearby tap and do the test again immediately afterweards providing a reading of 0.00. Much the same as you might do with alcoholic breath spray.
It wouldn't take any weight to court of course because the issue is too easily resolved, just thought I would add my two cents worth.
Willie
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Oxford(ish)
Posts: 45
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
This could be the origin of the phrase "They've got more ways to get high then the Air force".
BTW. I wasn't suggest NWA work to a low standard, but i'm surprised they gave this guy his job back. Potential PR nightmare!
People with Alcohol problems can be completely rehabilitated, especially if the root cause of their addiction/self abuse can be identified and suitable help given. A lot of people go through transitory period of over-drinking (I know I have) and they either realise and back off, or pass through that phase or event in their life and stop drinking.
BTW. I wasn't suggest NWA work to a low standard, but i'm surprised they gave this guy his job back. Potential PR nightmare!
People with Alcohol problems can be completely rehabilitated, especially if the root cause of their addiction/self abuse can be identified and suitable help given. A lot of people go through transitory period of over-drinking (I know I have) and they either realise and back off, or pass through that phase or event in their life and stop drinking.
