Air Transat pilots accused of being too drunk to fly Glasgow-Toronto flight

Two Air Transat pilots were arrested in Scotland on suspicion of being under the influence of alcohol, as they were getting ready to fly passengers from Glasgow to Toronto, authorities said.

The Canadian airline said the pilots were arrested on Monday before the trans-Atlantic flight took off. The flight, which was carrying around 250 passengers, was due to leave Glasgow around 1 p.m. local time.

Staff at the airport raised concerns over the pilots behavior at Glasgow Airport ahead of the takeoff, local media reports said. The Scottish Sun reported the pilots were hauled off the plane itself.

In a tweet, Air Transat said it wouldn’t comment on the matter since the case is before the courts.

The “safety of our crews & passengers is our top priority. We await results of judicial proceedings before commenting on the matter,” the airline said.

Police in Scotland said the men, aged 37 and 39, are due to appear in court Tuesday, charged with being “impaired through alcohol.”

Phyl Durdey, CEO of Flightline Training Services in Buttonville, said given that the altitude in an aircraft is 8,000 feet, “alcohol could hit you a lot faster” than it would on the ground.

According to Canadian Aviation Regulations, crew members cannot work on board a flight while under the influence of alcohol or within eight hours after consuming alcohol. The crew also cannot be “using any drug that impairs the person’s faculties to the extent that the safety of the aircraft or of persons on board the aircraft is endangered in any way.”

Celebrity interior designers Colin McAllister and Justin Ryan were on that flight, and tweeted: “Counting blessings that @airtransat flight we were on did not take off yesty [yesterday]. Thankfully someone spotted pilots behaviour. In court this am.”

In an emailed statement, the Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) said it won’t comment on the Air Transat case since it is an ongoing investigation. However, the pilots union said incidents of substance abuse are “extremely rare” among its pilots.

“The airline piloting profession in North America is one of the most highly scrutinized careers, and airline pilots’ professionalism has contributed to making flying the safest form of transport for passengers and air cargo shippers,” the union went on to say.

The union represents 53,000 pilots at 31 airlines in Canada and the U.S., including the two accused flight crew members.

“Transport Canada is aware that two members of an Air Transat flight crew were detained at Glasgow airport,” the minister’s office said in a statement. “Authorities are investigating and a judicial decision is expected.”

Air Transat said the stranded passengers were put up in hotels overnight and would be flown to Toronto on a rescheduled flight on Tuesday.

On Tuesday morning, McAllister and Ryan told 680 NEWS they were about to board the flight to Toronto. The flight arrived at Pearson International Airport in the afternoon.

Ryan said he didn’t see the pilots being taken off plane. He said passengers were waiting in the lounge when they were told of an hour delay, which turned into a much longer one.

“I think they managed that whole scenario pretty expertly so that nobody saw police on the plane, [and] nobody saw the pilots being taken away,” Ryan said after they landed at Pearson.

McAllister said on the rescheduled flight, the pilot briefly mentioned the incident and apologized for it

He said he doesn’t think the airline should have told the passengers why the flight was delayed.

“You don’t want to scare the passengers. If they can actually take the hassle of that kind of message [away from] the passengers, then I think the airline has a duty to do that,” McAllister said.

With files from The Associated Press