Pilot arrested in cockpit after screener smells alcohol

[Nugget]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/01/13/int....ap/index.html

Originally Posted by AP NewsWire

An armed AirTran Airways pilot was charged with operating an aircraft under the influence after a federal screener at McCarran International Airport smelled alcohol, authorities said Thursday.

[haze]

I totally agree with AirTran's actions, they canned his a$$! This is something that absolutely cannot be tolerated. This is an industry-wide problem, I'm all for every single captain of every single airline being breathalized on every single flight. I fly AirTran, Delta, Southwest, etc. and want to know that my captain is sober before I put my 5 year old son and 6 month old daughter onboard. Kudos to AirTran for showing this idiot the door:

AirTran fires captain arrested on Atlanta-bound flight

By RUSSELL GRANTHAM
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 01/14/05
AirTran Airways said it fired one of its captains Friday after his arrest in Las Vegas for allegedly failing an alcohol breath test before a planned red-eye flight to Atlanta.

Oliver Reason Jr. was booked on a charge of operation of an aircraft under the influence shortly after midnight Thursday morning, said Sgt. Chris Jones of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

Federal security screeners summoned police after noticing the AirTran pilot "smelled of alcoholic beverage," Jones said. AirTran said the airport screeners notified the airline as well.

Reason is a member of the Transportation Security Administration's Federal Flight Deck Officer Program and was carrying a weapon, AirTran spokesman Tad Hutcheson said.

AirTran said the 38-year-old Newnan man was on the plane but had not yet taken command.

"It's a breach of company policy," Hutcheson said of Reason's arrest. "We never dispatched the plane."

The Orlando-based airline canceled the 11:45 pm flight, which had 60 passengers on board, and placed passengers on other flights.

[haze]

Pilot Facing Intoxication Charge Is Fired


Source: Comtex News Network (AP Online - Comtex)


AirTran Airways has fired a pilot who was arrested and charged with operating an aircraft while under the influence of alcohol.

A breath test found that pilot Oliver Paul Reason Jr. had a blood alcohol level of 0.09 when he was arrested Wednesday, according to a police report. The legal limit for driving in Nevada is 0.08, and federal regulations prohibit flying at 0.04 percent or higher.

After being released from the Clark County Detention Center on Thursday, Reason, 37, was flown to Atlanta, where company officials fired him for violating a policy against flying with a blood-alcohol level higher than 0.04 percent, said Tad Hutcheson, an airline spokesman.

Reason did not return a message left at his home in Newnan, Ga., near Atlanta. The National Pilots Association, which represents AirTran pilots, would not comment on the case.

Las Vegas police were called Wednesday after a security checkpoint screener smelled alcohol on Reason's breath. Reason told officers he had not had a drink in about 10 hours, according to the arrest report.

Orlando-based AirTran Holdings Inc. said the Atlanta-bound aircraft was held at the gate and the pilot never took command of the plane. The flight was canceled.

Reason could lose his pilot license if a Federal Aviation Administration investigation finds he violated regulations. Besides the blood-alcohol limit, federal rules also prohibit pilots from drinking alcohol less than eight hours before a flight.

[BovineOne]

His picture is in http://www.capitalnews9.com/content/...13576&SecID=33

[jetmech717]

Sad for him. He was with the company for a long time, and was a good pilot. I hate to see a career ruined with 1 night and 1 bad decision. Unfortunatly this is one of those things that you dont get a "slap on the wrist" for. If you mess up on something like this, )even if you have a perfect record) the company has to do the right thing.

[haze]

It is regrettable that his long career as a commercial captian has probably come to an end over a single incident. But in aviation a single incident can be the difference in life and death. Which is why I'm glad to see AirTran act so swiftly with zero tollerance. This exemplifies just how serious they are about the safety of their passengers...

[NiGHTS]

Very happy about AirTran's quick response

[Captain Speaking]

Strange . . . . . no mention in the Delta forum about the Delta pilot who was arrested in Germany last week, who was pulled off the flight for suspicion of being under the influence. . . . or the ASA (Delta Connection) pilot fired last year for the same thing . . . . and nothing in the America West forum about their two pilots arrested in Miami, even though the forum goes back that far . . . . .

No, but the AirTran pilot gets his own string in this forum, and even his picture on ITYT.

To even pretend that this site has some shred of objectivity is ridiculous.

[haze]

Eggzackly. I've been beating that specific horse to death here on this site for nearly two years. We're speaking to a brick wall though, there's a blatant agenda at work here

[717driver]

The charges have been dropped against the AirTran pilot.