Allegedly Drunk Delta Pilot Grounded After Being Arrested for Attempting to Fly Over the Limit
(Photo: Nick Morales/Unsplash)
A Delta pilot named Lawrence Russell, Jr. arrived at Edinburgh Airport for a flight from Scotland to New York City. Authorities arrested the pilot for allegedly being drunk. Passengers on Flight DL209 had already boarded when this occurred, resulting in a last-minute cancelation on June 16. The 62-year-old has since appeared in Edinburgh Sheriff’s Court.
Russell was charged under the UK’s Railways and Transport Safety Act of 2003. This act states that it is an offense when an individual “performs an aviation function at a time when the proportion of alcohol in his breath, blood or urine exceeds the prescribed limit.”
Authorities have not released Russell’s blood alcohol levels at the time of the incident but the legal limit is 20 milligrams of alcohol in 100 milliliters of blood or BAC of 0.02. In the US, many states have a blood alcohol limit of 0.08 when driving a vehicle.
“Delta confirms that one of its crew was taken into custody [Friday] morning at EDI Airport,” stated an airline spokesperson.
The representative continued, “Delta is assisting the authorities with their on-going inquiries. Delta’s EDI-JFK flight (June 16) has been canceled, and customers are being re-accommodated. We apologize to customers impacted by this cancellation.”
Delta indicated that the company has among the strictest alcohol policies in the industry and does not tolerate violations.
On Monday afternoon, Russell made no plea to the charges against him. At the time, he remained in custody over the weekend and was “committed for further examination,” said a Police Scotland spokesperson, according to ABC News.
The 62-year-old pilot is expected to appear in court again within the next eight days.
As of Wednesday, Sheriff Gordon Liddle granted Russell bail, as reported by Edinburgh News. However, he is not allowed to fly within UK airspace until the case has been resolved.
More details about Russell’s blood alcohol levels when arriving at the airport may come to light as the case progresses.
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