Easy Jet - Drunk Captain
 

This I heard has happened last Saturday Jan 8,2005 in SXF:
After going through security and check in, a female english Easy Jet Captain was asked by some authority personell to please come along to take an alcohol test.I assume that they recieved a tip.
The test showed 1.6 Promille !!
The CoPilot I heard has confessed to have noticed some sighns of alcohol but the young lad he was, descided to be a good boy instead and not say anything.
Needless to say that this flight was canceled for that crew but what surprises me is that nothing came out to the public.
What a headline that would be!
Did anybody hear something or does this stay inside orange rooms?

1 - If this indeed happend, there would be NO WAY that this would stay within "the orange rooms"

2 - 1.6!!! I think with 1.6 most people could not even stand up or even talk...

Any other good story to give the public!??

:yuk: :*

I think it would have hit the press if it was true. There would have been a plane load of Daily Mail readers (if it was going to the UK).who would have been on the phone instantaneously. I really hope it is not true. Not only for the individual, but her airline and the general industry.

Regards

Wide

aouch! If true, I woulden't want to be in her shoes.

Don't understand why the airlines don't put an end to all this by testing all their pilots before they fly. It's seems pretty easy to just have them blow befor flight. I mean sure some poeple would probaly find it intrusive but you have to consider how this puts a bad stamp on all pilots even though it's just a few who have these kinds of problems. Also publicity like this doesn't exactly speak: "flightsafety".

It should also make peopley think once or twice before they "fill up" before flight, knowing that they abolutely will get caught.

I think it´s not quite apropriate to deliver postings like this until an official statement is in the air.
I know, not everybody likes to see EZY in Germany. Who knows what´s realy behind all this-even if it´s true?
So let´s wait for an official statement!

Just a note... this is a completely unsourced rumour (by admission) from a newly registered poster at the moment. Not even a twitch from any official sources. So, perhaps a quick reprise of the red text at the foot of every page of this site would be a good idea.

To wit... As these are anonymous forums the origins of the contributions may be opposite to what may be apparent. In fact the press may use it, or the unscrupulous, to elicit certain reactions.

Prepared to stand corrected, but definitely worth the reminder given the potential seriousness of the issue.

Sick Squid
Rumours and News Moderator

I am an easyJet pilot and although I cannot categorically say this incident did not happen, I can tell you that there has not been one single mention of it at work. That includes the pilots I fly with and also through official company channels such as the intranet site or the crew e-mail system.

I would be extremely wary of accepting this rumour as true until there was some sort of independant verification of it. This is not the sort of thing the company would hide from its employees and if it is true you can rest assured that there will be a whole lot more on it than one thread on PPRUNE started by someone who has never posted before. I for one will reserve judgement until there is more to go on - I am sure that all responsible pilots will do the same.

unplugged, what are you trying to stir?

"a FEMALE ezy CAPTAIN ( oohh, what a scary, scary thaught!!! ) who is drunk to unconsciousness and it doesn't hit the headlines!! because the individual is female!"

ezyjet and the industry trying to disguise it, BECAUSE of the gender? While the Finnair guy, getting all he deserves, she gets away with it!!

Was that your point?

You noticed: all the people who took the trouble to post a reply didn't pick up on "the fact" it was a woman! They are more concerned about the validity of your story.
I am soo pleased, it looks as though we regard each other as individuals who are performing the same job, rather than bickering about gender aso.

Unplugged, remember: although it sometimes doesn't look like it: the intelligence of this audience is above average, here.

May be you're a wannabee, who got rejected by ezy, and you can't stand the fact, they took a girl, instead of you?

Folks,

as pilots we should (especially if pilots, also from other airlines, are involved personally) look for facts!
Maybe there is something to it or not! Even if UNPLUGGED knows more than everybody, it´s no style to bring it up like this!
The question remains: what is your intention, UNPLUGGED?
I would not like to have an FO like you by my side!
Again, let´s wait for an official statement to come or not to come!

According to an alcohol spreadsheet given to me some years ago (and which I accept may not be accurate) a consumption of about 2.5 litres of wine over a period of five hours would just reach 1.6 parts per thousand. Seven hours later the subject would be back down to 0.2 pro mil. Do these figures sound reasonable?

Not sure I'd be happy to do anything more demanding than make a cup of tea after that though :yuk:

I am an EZY pilot and I can confirm it is true; however she was not drunk and incapable, the lady in question smelt of alcohol and was taken aside by SXF security and tested positive.

Removed from flying duties ufn, nothing official from orange towers and dont expect anything unless the tabloids get hold of it!

When will we all learn!

Unplugged
 

Maybe needs plugging again.

oTd

noflare - after this thread I'm sure the tabloids will know about it.

This again shows up the perils of PPRUNE, that unattributable posts are sometimes looked on as malicious when they may in fact be based on reality. Either way it's had the effect that the poster may have intended which is to get it into the "public" arena. As they say this one still has some way to go...

But the tabloids will also forget about it again quite soon.

Remeber: The guy last year in MAN is not worth to speak about anymore but with pprune or other similar forums.

Also nobody is talking about the BA guys anymore, BBC proofed to be drunken the evening before the flight and still having a rest of alcohol at the time of crew-c/i.
....
ETC ETC ETC ETC
...

So lets wait and figure out what happend after getting something official by the german LBA (Aviation Admin).

One possibility I am thinking of is that there a certain medications e.g. that contain alcohol (even the ones you dont expect to) - so maybe she took one of that the evening before hand a a little rest of alcohol.

I also think we do not have to discuss that 1,6 Promille are out of any reality.
As pilots are very restricted in consumption of alcohol,
I would assume most would lay down as if they would have met Mike Tyson before:ouch: after consuming the amount necessary to have such a number.

But anyway - drunken pilots are a danger and dangers have to be eliminated.
So if my possible explanation with medication would be true why didn's she report sick and recovered and broke the rules by intenting to fly under the influence of Medication?


Regards Phil

It would seem that there is truth to this sad rumour...This has just been posted on EZY's intranet news...


STATEMENT REGARDING INCIDENT IN BERLIN


easyJet can confirm that on the 8th of January 2005 one of its pilots at Berlin Schoenefeld Airport was prevented from commencing flying duty on suspicion of being over the alcohol limit.

The pilot was scheduled to operate flight EZY3455 to Basle in Switzerland with 120 passengers due to depart at 06.45 local time. The aircraft was an Airbus 319. easyJet rostered an alternative pilot and the flight departed at 7.09 local time.

Safety is easyJet's highest priority and we pride ourselves on going above and beyond the minimum legal standards. Under UK Civil Aviation Authority regulations, pilots must not consume alcohol for a minimum of eight hours before reporting for duty. However, easyJet's own rules are more stringent and stipulate that pilots must not consume alcohol for a minimum of ten hours before reporting for duty.

Throughout our nine years of operations, we have never before encountered an incident such as this. Should the allegations relating to this incident be proven, easyJet would be extremely disappointed and distressed.

easyJet has suspended the pilot and begun its own internal investigation - as a result we are unable to make any further comment.

Come on Norman Stanley Fletcher, you got to be kidding us! ;)

Oo Err Missus
 

Just to be clear, is 1.6 Promille the level equal to 8 times the UK max? And what is the limit in Germany?

Quite simple:

0,2 promille.

First, would someone care to point to the string of accidents that make this witch-hunt so desireable?

Nope, thought not, as there are hardly any, but pilots being so highly paid and underworked with fabulous social and family lives, it's only fair to come down ultra-hard...

Second, I read with interest the statement 'Throughout our nine years of operations, we have never before encountered an incident such as this.'

Short memories, orange people? Granted, no-one's had their collar felt by the local plod before, but the T&G were remarkably successful in 'defending' one of their members soon after they took an interest in pilot-type people...

...and as for Norman Stanley... Just which planet is he on?

>The test showed 1.6 Promille<

Can anyone please explain to me what this means - never heard of this before - perhaps I should get out more!