A Southwest Airlines pilot was arrested on Wednesday morning at Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport. The airline found another pilot and the flight departed to Chicago-Midway airport nearly five hours late.
He was stopped at the airport’s TSA checkpoint, and airport police called, because his breath smelled of alcohol.
According to the airline,
We’re aware of a situation involving an employee on Flight 3772 this morning from Savannah. The employee has been removed from duty. Customers were accommodated on other flights, and we apologize for the disruption to their travel plans. There’s nothing more important to Southwest than the safety of our employees and customers.
The 17-year veteran was taken into custody and later released on $3,500 bond.
Commercial airline pilots have to go at least 8 hours from their last drink prior to flying (“8 hours bottle-to-throttle”) and their blood alcohol limit is .04. One pilot once offered but it had been 9 hours since he drank! as an excuse, waving away being over the limit. Both rules matter.
George Burns once said, “Actually, it only takes one drink to get me loaded. Trouble is, I can’t remember if it’s the thirteenth or fourteenth.”
Some things are maybe even worse? One British Airways pilot snorted coke off a topless woman before trying to fly passengers to London and made the crucial mistake of putting details of the substance-filled orgy in writing to a flight attendant.
And once a pilot drank 17 rum and cokes before actually flying from Fargo to Minneapolis (he “fell on the floor before leaving the bar”) while “two other crew members shared seven pitchers of beer.”
Air travel can be a difficult career and drinking and other substance problems get hidden. Pilots with substance abuse problems are often wary of speaking up and seeking help, for fear of being sidelined, despite programs designed to encourage them to do so.
Pilots hide not just alcohol abuse but mental health conditions and that points to a fundamental conundrum: you want pilots to be open and seek help in order to promote safety, but once they’re open they’re a clearly identified risk and get removed from the cockpit. So the consequences of being open discourage that openness. Or at least that’s the fear many pilots have, not trusting any commitments to help rather than punish.
And you can’t act as a pilot for any aircraft with a BAC beyond 0.04% also, but airlines often have 24 hour rules, which are considerably beyond the FAA minimum that you mentioned. Having retired from the sport with a commercial ticket my own observations are that almost everyone follows the rules on this. But obviously there will be those in any field whose ego says they can cut corners. (“I’m a pilot/surgeon/ship captain, etc. and know what I’m doing.”) You want people with self-confidence in such positions, but also ones who are humble enough to always do what is sensible. I wish there was a simple answer here.
Ah, yes, the Speakeasy in Moorhead, MN . Fargo is across the river, but somehow NW pilots decided to head out for Italian food and a lot of drinks. They got busted because another customer overheard them talking about being pilots, and the flight they were flying in the morning.
Turns out the customer’s mom was on that flight, so he called law enforcement and let them know. The FAA met them when they got to the gate. I wasnt working in FAR anymore, but I heard it was quite the scene!
Play stupid games…..
It’s sad. Glad there was enforcement. Too many lives are on the line.
Alcoholism is a disease. Mental health illnesses are also concerning. We must avoid another Germanwings 9525 situation; I’m assuming this is why now there are always two people in the cockpit at all times, even if a pilot needs to use the restroom, a flight attendant steps in for a moment. Again, too many lives on the line.
That said, I respect how pilots and crews have quite demanding jobs, including long hours, difficult time-zone changes, the wear and tear on the body from the pressurized cabins, being away from home for long periods, and the years of expensive and time-consuming training.
Pilots and crews deserve high-quality compensation and benefits. Without them, we don’t fly.
Is it normal for TSA to screen for alcohol or only if it’s so obvious they have to pull them aside?
Many moons ago, during training, I arrived for my session a little hung over and a little delicate but functional (and legal). This some 12 or so hours after a night out.
I arrived and must have looked a little haggard or something.
We settled in and all was well until the instructor had me doing go arounds, evasive maneuvers, engine out procedures etc basically putting me under a lot of pressure.
Every pore in my body opened up, I sweated profusely and when we shut down, he turned to me, smiled and said “You won’t do that again will you”.
Lesson learned..after that, I never drink more than 2 drinks and it has to be more than 12hrs before I get in an aircraft.
This week, in the previous VFTW article regarding drinking by pregaming before flying, I said, “Sometimes, a few pilots will join passengers to pregame before their flight. For example, according to WTOC News, a Southwest Airlines pilot was arrested on January 15, 2025, for DUI while on the plane at the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport for allegedly arriving to work intoxicated. Southwest Flight 3772, scheduled to fly from Savannah (SAV) to Chicago Midway (MDW), was grounded for over four hours. Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport police boarded Southwest Airlines flight 3772 and arrested the pilot.
Southwest Airlines fosters a culture that supports employees struggling with substance abuse, alcohol overconsumption, or mental health issues, which has led to an excellent employee support program. To prioritize safety, Southwest Airlines emphasizes its commitment to safety, recognizing that intoxicated employees pose a risk to everyone. The airline states that its top priorities are customers’ and employees’ safety and security. As Southwest Airlines seeks outstanding flight attendants, I have included helpful information regarding Southwest Airlines’ expectations during flight attendant training. Please consider applying for a position with Southwest Airlines, as I value excellent service when flying.”
With the pilot and trained flight attendant shortage, as an employee retention strategy, it is cost-effective for airlines to offer employee assistance programs (EAP) instead of terminating an employee for an issue like drug or alcohol misuse. Working airline employees must drink responsibly and follow all guidance from their employers. Assistance from an EAP may prevent any further employee corrections. It can help airlines keep a good employee, thus alleviating the additional costs of recruitment, onboarding, and training of their replacement.
Read more:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/southwest-airlines-pilot-dui-booking-savannah/
https://www.swauniversity.com/preclass/Inflight_Preflight_Packet.pdf
https://www.southwest.com/assets/pdfs/corporate-commitments/safety-commitment-pol.pdf
https://my.aa.com/eap
https://my.aa.com/mental-health/
https://colleenbarrett.com/
I would imagine the pilot in question did not want to call in sick for this could have triggered a “fitness for duty” test. Failure to appear for the test within a specific timeframe is grounds for suspension.