Pilot sacked after failing breathalyser
AIR INDIA HAS SACKED a pilot who tested positive for alcohol after operating a flight from Phuket to New Delhi.
The pilot was doing a training flight for a new captain, reported The Times of India.
Comments were sought from Air India on the issue and awaited till the time of going to press, reported the Indian news agency.
The Tata group airline was apparently taking a tough stance on the incident and was also working on filing an ‘FIR’ against the captain who had operated the Phuket-Delhi flight and subjected to a breathalyser test on arrival in New Delhi.
“We have a zero tolerance of these things and have taken very strong action, of not only terminating his service but are also planning to file an FIR as operating a flight under influence of alcohol is a criminal act. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has been informed,” airline sources told the newspaper.
An Air India flight arrives in Phuket after the launch of direct flights between Phuket and New Delhi in December.
Pilots and cabin crew operating flights within India must undergo pre-flight tests as no alcohol is available, served or sold on domestic flights, explained the report.
Post-flight tests are conducted on flight crew operating international flights, where alcohol is available.
In the first six months of 2023, 33 pilots and 97 cabin crew members had failed their breathalyser tests, The Times of India noted.
Usually failing a breathalyser test for the first time means licence suspension for three months. The same person found over the limit a second time incurs a suspension for three years. A third time means the licence will be revoked, the newspaper explained. The Phuket News