Air India bans another pilot who failed an alcohol test

In my view any airline pilot who fails a breath test while on duty should be sacked with immediate effect.

If an Air India pilot who likes a drink fails a test, however, they get a slap on the wrist and three months on the naughty step.

Air India this week took what it describes as "disciplinary action" after another of its pilots failed a pre-flight breathalyser test.

This time it is a female pilot, which is relatively rare, Travel Mole reported.

The unnamed pilot was given an automatic three-month suspension, which means she could be back flying passengers by July.

The pilot serves as a first officer flying Boeing 787 jets and failed the test before a scheduled flight from Delhi to Hyderabad last week.

Air India has not publicly commented on the issue. It's probably too ashamed.

All crew members are required to take a pre-flight alcohol test before duty under India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation rules. 

Earlier this year, Air India dismissed a pilot who failed a breathalyser test shortly after flying an international flight.

The pilot tested positive for alcohol after completing a flight from Phuket to Delhi.

The pilot was the senior in the cockpit, working the flight with a newly-appointed captain, unlike the latest case where the boozy pilot was caught before taking to the air.

Just how many drunk pilots are there?

Earlier this month a Delta Air Lines pilot was jailed in the UK after being way over the limit when tested for alcohol in his system.

But the Jagermeister-loving American is not alone in thinking it is fine to fly a plane load of passengers when off his face.

Air India this week dismissed a pilot who failed a breathalyser test shortly after flying an international flight, Travel Mole reported.

The pilot tested positive for alcohol after completing a flight from Phuket to Delhi.

“We have zero tolerance and have taken very strong action,” an airline source told Indian media.

The airline reportedly plans to file a criminal case with police and has informed regulator the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

The pilot was the senior in the cockpit, working the flight with a newly-appointed captain.

He must have known that pilots are subject to post-flight testing on international flights, which makes his behaviour all the more inexplicable.

Last year, the DGCA said it suspended nine pilots and 32 cabin crew for failing pre-flight breathalyser tests.

Failing a test automatically leads to a pilot’s license suspension for three months. A second offence leads to a ban of three years.

Many would think they should never be allowed to fly again.