A Delta Air Lines pilot was arrested in Stockholm for failing a random breathalyzer test on Tuesday right before the airline’s Boeing 767 to New York JFK was to depart.
However there are reports that the initial breathalyzer reading may have been wrong, and the pilot may have been legal to fly. I’m not sure that really changes how I think about this incident.
It should be noted, however, that breathalyzer tests are not 100% accurate and a follow-up test is normally conducted, either with a larger and more accurate breathalyzer machine or via a blood draw.
It appears that this is what happened in this case, and the second test concluded that the pilot was within the permitted alcohol limits.
While rare, poor calibration (especially) but also interfering chemicals or variability in breathing can potentially skew results of a breathalyzer. I’ve seen error rate estimates of ~ 1 in 10,000.
I’m o.k. with cancelling a flight because the best available information – no matter how imperfect – suggests that a pilot shouldn’t be operating the aircraft. I haven’t yet seen a claim that the pilot’s blood alcohol content was actually zero, just that it wasn’t above 0.02. Allowable alcohol levels in a pilot’s blood are probably set too low to begin with, so while the pilot may have been considered legal to fly it still seems reasonable that it was cancelled.
- The EU has a stricter standard than the U.S. does, allowing 0.02 blood alcohol content, while the U.S. permits 0.04.
- I have a hard time fathoming allowing drinking alcohol at all within 8 or even 12 hours of flying. I’d want pilot pay to come with the expectation that they’re not impaired at all. “Alcohol at a BAC of 0.015% has been shown to cause impairment of performance at tasks requiring division of attention, such as monitoring two channels of information simultaneously.”
- The major pilot union, ALPA, lobbies hard against greater computerization of cockpits. They want two-person cockpits even once AI clearly outperforms co-pilots.
At one time you might have had a captain, first officer, flight engineer, navigator and radio operator on a flight. Cockpits were downsized to three by the early 1960s. Eastern Airlines flight engineers went on strike in response to new aircraft which no longer supported a need for their employment. It’s this legacy that causes ALPA to argue for at least two pilots, rather than two pilots.
- But surely the best autopilots are better than a human pilot blowing a .04? The FAA’s position hsa been that pilots should completely avoid alcohol before flight.
Commercial airline pilots have to go at least 8 hours from their last drink prior to flying (“8 hours bottle-to-throttle”) in addition to being below the blood alcohol limit for the jurisdiction they’re in. 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.”
Paddle Your Own Kanoo suggests that the second test conflicting with the first throws an interesting wrinkle into whether passengers are each owed 600 euros (~ US$705) for the cancellation and ensuing delay in reaching their destination under EU261.
- Unavailable crew still means the airline owes compensation, and that was the case here. A pilot getting arrested before the flight – whether for good cause or in error – makes crew unavailable to operate the flight, and compensation is due.
- Delta can argue, though, that their crew was ready and available to work and only stopped by the government and therefore it shouldn’t be held liable.
It seems likely that passengers will need to fight for any EU261 compensation, perhaps turning over their claim to a third party like AirHelp to pursue in exchange for a percentage of the amounts received.
@Tim Dunn — Bah! Vindication!
Just like with speed-cameras, challenge on ‘calibration,’ etc. It’s worked for me in D.C.
There are other reasons BAC can read high besides drinking or miscalibration. Some foods with high sugar content or fermented ingredients can cause a temporary increase in blood alcohol levels. Even something as simple as mouthwash can cause false positives on breathalyzer tests.
Should pilots have to undergo a mandatory disulfiram regimen as a condition of holding a license?
I also wonder how much alcohol it would take to have a BAC over 0.02 after not having any drinks in the last 8 hours. While everyone is different, a BAC of 0.08 should be close to zero in 4-5 hours. I never found this rule difficult to follow. It’s a good thing secondary tests are done, even though it is pretty rare for one to be in error.
Someday we will probably see single-pilot airplanes, but I think it’s a way off. For one thing, humans have to program them. And a second set of eyes helps correct mistakes.
Even though we have spell checkers, somehow articles still get published with errors. In this article:
“But surely the best autopilots are better than a human pilot blowing a .04? The FAA’s position hsa been that pilots should completely avoid alcohol before flight.”
Flying is much less forgiving of errors.
I am glad for her sake that she asked for a second test and was cleared.
there are many reasons why the limit for a breathalyzer is not zero.
“once AI clearly outperforms co-pilots”
Gary what is a co-pilot? Is it less of pilot requirement? A First Officer can do everything a Captain can, when tasked/required to. As far as outperforming, I’m not sure what you think outperforming means. There’s the flying portion, but there’s also the human element of flying passengers that requires Captains Authority, similar to a cruise ship.
I’m curious, there are a lot of other airline functions and jobs that are also at threat of AI replacement, but you never mention them…solely pilots, I wonder why?
@KB. I’ll take an AI robotic android flight attendant.
Law school exam question
Stop asserting that it is rare for breathalyzers to be in error, and especially not made up stats like “1 in 10,000”. The handheld ones deployed in the field are just plain not accurate, which is why (at least in the US) their readings can only form a basis of probable cause and ARE NOT VALID as evidence of a specific level of intoxication. Which is exactly why there was second test here.
Sure, it’s not going to read 0.20 when the actual level is 0.02, but 0.08 instead of 0.02 is totally possible, as would 0.03 instead of 0.01.
Blood draws and the much larger breathalyzers you’ll find at police stations are much much more accurate.
So if the pilot blew over 0.02 on the field breathalyzer, but under 0.02 in a more accurate test, that means she was max 0.01, which is nothing. She may not have had any alcohol from adult beverages in her system at all.
@Denver Refugee yes, if everyone operating a car agrees to do the same. Hundreds of people die every year from alcohol-related car crashes. When’s the last time a drunk pilot crashed a plane?
AI flying a plane!! Are you crazy, has your computer ever crashed?
@kb – second human pilot
Thank you, Gary, for including a video from the movie ‘Flight.’ As I mentioned in the earlier post on this incident, that’s immediately where my mind went. Denzel was great in that one.
On EU261, blaming this incident on the government is a weak attempt to skirt the airline’s obligations under that regulation. Ultimately, it was Delta’s pilot that initially caused this significant delay/cancellation. PYOK is wrong to attempt to over-complicate this. Pay the passengers.
@JustTheFactsMadam:
Every breath test I’ve done as a crew member was on a large machine, not the handheld field units. Never had it done in Sweden so I’m not sure how it was done to the Delta pilot.
Shouldn’t the co-pilot and therefore their boss be held liable for the compensation, since they may have been the ones to originally falsely accuse the pilot of being over the limit? The government simply provided the test (and possible faulty equipment).
@Joe — Exactly. That is a more likely, reasonable outcome (the airline is liable, whether directly or vicariously). Delta has the deep pockets here, not the passengers. Yet, we’re conditioned in the USA at least to nearly always favor the corporate interests over that of the people. It’s honestly sad to watch happen again and again. It’s almost like we have… Stockholm syndrome…
The breathalyzer is based on a fundamental flaw: the concept that there is a good relationship between blood alcohol and breath alcohol. There is a “standard” conversion but it can be off by a factor of 3 for some people.
For it’s design purpose it’s good: identify those you don’t need to blood test. That’s all it should ever mean, though. Likewise, the field drug tests are prone to false positives and their only real value is in saying what you don’t send to the lab.
And the reason we don’t test below .02 is that your digestive system normally produces a slight amount of alcohol. Usually not enough to matter, but there are a few unfortunates who go through life drunk despite not drinking any alcohol.
When you are in the .02% ABV zone, you need to be taking a look at commuting pilots who do not have a bed and night’s sleep before reporting for duty. Commuting before a flight is likely as big or bigger an issue than a low level of alcohol.
@Carl – pilot fatigue is a separate – but serious – issue
Gary, you have it all wrong, it’s no smoking 12 hours before flight and no drinking within 50feet of the aircraft.
@av8reb — Or, you can do it like the mainland Chinese airlines, where the pilots still smoke on-board. It took the Civil Aviation Administration of China until 2019 to officially ban it. First and last time flying Air China in 2016, I distinctly recall the smell of smoke and the sight of haze in the cabin for a 14+ hour flight. Miserable. Not worth the ‘deal’ to take that route. Yikes.
So the canceled a WHOLE FLIGHT due to a defective breathalyzer???? Costing the passengers (and airline) hundreds of thousands of $$$. Anybody see a problem with this picture??? Overzealous Enforcement????