Senior Air India Pilot Fails Alcohol Test, Suspended for Three Years

Guwahati: Captain Arvind Kathpalia, a senior Air India pilot, failed an alcohol test before a scheduled international flight which led him face bars from flying for at least three years. The Air India authority’s decision came a day after demands raised by the pilot association’s members for an immediate sack of the accused pilot.

The Indian Commercial Pilots' Association was strong in their demands asking for an immediate termination of Mr Kathpalia's as the senior pilot is a "repeat offender who endangers the lives of passengers".

Captain Kathpalia tested to have unacceptably high blood alcohol content and that is too shortly before his flight from New Delhi to London on Sunday. As per rules, this is a violation of the codes to take alcohol before flying a plane as such activities carry a high risk of danger to the lives of the passengers. However, this is not the first time that the senior pilot is accused of the same offence. Before this, Kathpalia failed the breathalyzer test. Again in January 2017, following which he was grounded for three months for skipping the test before a flight.

Union Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu too had asked the national carrier to relieve the rule breaker captain from his service immediately.

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