Delta pilot tests positive for alcohol, removed from plane

Pilotonline ^ | 26 Dec 2002 | MATTHEW ROY

[csvset]

Delta pilot tests positive for alcohol, removed from plane

By MATTHEW ROY, The Virginian-Pilot

© December 26, 2002

Last updated 3:00 PM Dec. 26

The co-pilot of a Delta airline flight tested positive for alcohol after he was removed from a plane at Norfolk International Airport while performing pre-flight checks early Thursday morning.

A test administered by airport police revealed that the co-pilot, 42-year-old Gary Schroeder of Yorktown, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.07 percent, said Ken Scott, executive director of the Norfolk airport authority.

The Federal Aviation Administration's limit for a flight crew member is 0.04 percent. By comparison, the legal limit for driving in Virginia is 0.08.

Schroeder, who cooperated with airport police, was issued a summons for violating a city code that makes it illegal for an aircraft pilot to be under the influence of alcohol, Scott said. The statute applies to planes ``in operation on the airport.''

Schroeder was not taken into custody.

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Delta's local manager notified the airline, and the co-pilot was then put on a flight to Delta's headquarters in Atlanta, Scott said. He was accompanied by the pilot he had been scheduled to fly with, he said.

Schroeder came to the attention of authorities when a screener at a security checkpoint detected the odor of alcohol. The screener notified a supervisor, who spoke with Schroeder and also noted the odor, Scott said.

Airport screeners, who work for the federal Transportation Security Administration, did not have the authority to detain Schroeder, Scott said. He went on to board the plane while screeners notified airport police.

Police boarded the plane and asked Schroeder to come to a secure area, Scott said. Delta's local station manager accompanied Schroeder there. Schroeder agreed to blow into an alcohol-detection device.

Delta spokesman John Kennedy said the airline is investigating the incident, which delayed Flight 739 for about 55 minutes. The flight, bound for Cincinnati, had been scheduled to take off at 6:05 a.m.

After the delay, it took off with a different flight crew, Kennedy said.

``We're aware of an incident this morning and we're conducting an internal investigation,'' he said.

He declined to comment further.

FAA rules bar pilots from drinking alcohol for a certain number of hours before flying, said Donald J. Bartnik, the TSA's local security director. A pilot who breaks the rules faces serious sanctions, including the loss of license, he said.

Scott said that Schroeder is due in General District Court Jan. 9.

Reach Matthew Roy at mroy@pilotonline.com or 446-2540.

[csvset]

Delta, we like to fly high and it smells.

[Jhoffa_]

Airport screeners, who work for the federal Transportation Security Administration, did not have the authority to detain Schroeder..

They occupy most of their time with unconstitutional searches and feeling people up.

[Bobby777]

if the FAA says 0.04 is the limit, would he have still been charged under the city code if he had been at 0.04? (yes, I realize he was at 0.07) ... not that I'm promoting drunk or DUI pilots (obviously) but just wondering ...

[martin_fierro]

I sure hope it wasn't a passenger who first inquired about the pilot being drunk. That kind of stuff can get you thrown off the plane. <|:/~

[csvset]

Drinking pilot ping (hic)

[Physicist]

A pilot boozes it up, so the flight was delayed an hour. The pilot, while in trouble, doesn't seem to face criminal sanctions.

If a passenger had asked whether he'd been drinking, on the other hand, the flight would have been cancelled and the passenger charged with a crime.

[Jhoffa_]

PS; You know, it's a damn good thing no one joked about this while boarding..

That would be, well.. criminal!

[stylin19a]

Schroeder was not taken into custody.

This is opposed to the guy, on another airline, who stuck his head into a cockpit and asked the pilot, "I hope you haven't been drinking", who WAS taken into custody.

[Jhoffa_]

You beat me to it..

[patton]

Actually, the rule is 8 hours bottle-to-throttle. BAC is not mentioned.

[Physicist]

Well, at least I didn't link the same thread as you. :-)

[csvset]

Yeah, I posted a ping on that thread.

Lol, damned if you ask and damned if they drink, what's the solution?

[Lady Jag]

Drunk early Thursday morning? This guy needs to be checked more often.

[Jhoffa_]

Actually, the rule is 8 hours bottle-to-throttle. BAC is not mentioned.

Doesn't this run counter to science?

Surely you can drink enough not to be sober in a mere 8 hours.

[Jhoffa_]

DAMN!

You guy's are fast..

[martin_fierro]

Fingers of Fury! <|:)~

[patton]

Yep. That's what you get, when you rely on the government. Idiotic results.

[TightSqueeze]

Lol, damned if you ask and damned if they drink, what's the solution?

Obviously an end to free speech and a return to Prohibition, it is for your own good you know.

[csvset]

Yeah, the powers that be over reacted in the Milwaukee case. This case sounds as though it were handled in a sane manner. The pilot was issued a summons, and was replaced. He'll have to face the music back at company HQ. I'll bet he opts for a stint in "rehab", if it's offered.

[B Knotts]

Obviously, such a jest is more dangerous than having someone who actually has been drinking fly the airplane.

Gotta love them priorities!