A British Airways pilot was forcibly removed from the cockpit by police last week at LGW. Local police were called to the airport after the pilot’s colleagues suspected him of being intoxicated. The Mauritius-bound plane was delayed by just over two hours and a new pilot was eventually sourced.
A British Airways pilot was forcibly removed from a Mauritius-bound flight late last week over fears that he was too intoxicated to fly. The incident occurred onboard British Airways Flight 2063 which was due to depart from London’s Gatwick Airport (LGW) at 8:20 p.m. last Thursday, January 18, The Sun reports.
Fearing his physical state would compromise the safety of those onboard during the 11-hour journey, colleagues reportedly rang local emergency services when they suspected the pilot was drunk.
Police attended the scene just before the flight’s scheduled takeoff time. The Sun quoted an unnamed eyewitness as saying, “Cops rushed onto the plane and headed straight for the cockpit. The first officer was cuffed and led away. A number of passengers were open-mouthed.”
A replacement for the arrested first officer was eventually sourced and the flight, a Boeing 777 carrying approximately 300 passengers, departed just before 11 p.m. local time last week.
The BBC reports that a 49-year-old male from west London was arrested during the course of the incident. The man was “arrested on suspicion of performing an aviation function when the level of alcohol was over the prescribed limit,” the outlet reports. According to the BBC, he remains in police custody.
Commenting on the incident to the BBC, a spokesperson for the carrier said, “We are taking this matter extremely seriously.” They also issued a sincere apology to passengers, saying, “We are sorry for the delay to our customers. The aircraft remained at the gate until an alternative third pilot joined the flight crew.”
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