Pilot Under Investigation in Finland for Being Under the Influence

Police in Finland are investigating a Finnair pilot after he was found to be under the influence of alcohol before a scheduled flight from Helsinki Airport Wednesday.

According to the Finnish Broadcasting Company, Finnair employees filed the original complaint about a pilot possibly being under the influence and local police officers administered a breathalyzer test, which confirmed a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level of 1.5.

Local news outlets reported the pilot was not yet inside the cockpit, as the plane was still being prepared for its journey to Rome Wednesday afternoon. The flight was delayed by an hour and a half as the crew was changed.

A spokesperson for the national airline of Finland said the employee will be fired for the offense.

“The situation is under police investigation,” Finnair head of media relations Paivyt Tallqvist told YLE.fi. “When the substance abuse suspicion arose, Finnair staff reported it and then we followed protocol and asked the police to look into it. They administered a breathalyzer test, which confirmed the suspicion.”

“We have a zero-tolerance policy regarding substance abuse that affects everyone who works in security-critical tasks,” Tallqvist continued. “Pilots, of course, belong to this group. So, if an individual is at work under the influence of alcohol, we report it to the relevant authorities, as was done in this case. Termination of employment always follows.”