Drunk pilots - Indicted and On Trial

You don't drink and drive. You certainly don't drink and FLY. There is nothing else to say about this - except that if it happened here, it probably is going on with many other pilots with all airlines!

Interesting note, it was reported by a Phoenix news station that one of these two pilots was the son in law of the country singer Glenn Campbell in Phoenix that was arrested near his home in the Biltmore district before Thanksgiving for drunk driving. Hmm, family values? They must have good egg nog at Christmas.
 
It is one thing to take your own life, but to take the lives of others is unforgiveable. These 2 were willing to risk the lives of 124 passengers and 3 crew, throw the book at them. Just my thoughts.......
 
I've already sworn that if I ever see one of them there will be a right fist aiming at the back of their skulls. Not the front, the back. It's called follow through.
 
I don't want to flame anyone here but I assure you that these two guys are not the only ones that have tried to get away with flying drunk. The others succeeded. These guys merely got caught before they left the ground. Its a corporate culture (flight ops) anomily. Shame on these guys and the many who weren't caught. For the other 99%, please don't take offense to the reality exposure.
 
DISCLAIMER - I do not condone the actions of these two dopes.

BUT - consider this:

If this was a long overnight (say 26 hours or so) and a flip-flop and these guys got in at 8:00am, went to sleep and woke up around 4 or 5pm. It would not be unusual to find them awake at 5am, unable to sleep (even if they weren't drinking). So they maybe get another couple of hours sleep and show up exhausted ready to fly back to PHX.

To what extent would this fatigue have the same effect of a heightened blood alchohol content? This should be an opportunity to discuss fatiguing schedules as they affect air safety as well.

It goes without saying that you don't fly drunk, but you shouldn't fly tired either and long red-eye flip-flops have the same effect. :down:
 
The two former HP pilots accused of trying to fly intoxicated are now on Court TV going thru their trial. Very interesting stuff.
 
Drunk flying is just not acceptable. Hats off to the TSA for getting these attempted murderers.
 
AA191 said:
Drunk flying is just not acceptable. Hats off to the TSA for getting these attempted murderers.
[post="272528"][/post]​
Attempted murderers?

I'll buy epic stupid move. Attempted murderer, ah, no.
 
DISCLAIMER - I do not condone the actions of these two dopes.

BUT - consider this:

If this was a long overnight (say 26 hours or so) and a flip-flop and these guys got in at 8:00am, went to sleep and woke up around 4 or 5pm. It would not be unusual to find them awake at 5am, unable to sleep (even if they weren't drinking). So they maybe get another couple of hours sleep and show up exhausted ready to fly back to PHX.

To what extent would this fatigue have the same effect of a heightened blood alchohol content? This should be an opportunity to discuss fatiguing schedules as they affect air safety as well.

It goes without saying that you don't fly drunk, but you shouldn't fly tired either and long red-eye flip-flops have the same effect.
 
Anyone here lost family members to a drunk driver? I did not think so.

There is no justification for them flying that way. And by the way - why is alcohol such a big part of the piloting culture anyway?
 
AA191 said:
Anyone here lost family members to a drunk driver? I did not think so.

There is no justification for them flying that way. And by the way - why is alcohol such a big part of the piloting culture anyway?
[post="272593"][/post]​
How big a part of the piloting culture is it exactly? Any statistics on how many FAA Medicals are denied due to DUI's? Far more lives have been lost due to poor judgement brought on by fatigue that by any drunk pilot.

Legal to start, legal to finish. R.I.P.
 
Drunk flying is the topic.

However, I agree on fatigue and the effects it has on safe flying. For a really interesting piece on that go to www.nbaa.org and read one of the many reports on pilot fatigue. Fatigue must be addressed and is often overlooked. Maybe we should start a thread on fatigue somewhere instead of in the drunk pilots section.
 
AA191 said:
Drunk flying is the topic.

However, I agree on fatigue and the effects it has on safe flying. For a really interesting piece on that go to www.nbaa.org and read one of the many reports on pilot fatigue. Fatigue must be addressed and is often overlooked. Maybe we should start a thread on fatigue somewhere instead of in the drunk pilots section.
[post="272651"][/post]​


Check out just a few NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System reports on crew fatigue. Eye opening!

http://asrs.arc.nasa.gov/report_sets/acr_fatg.pdf
 
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