An apparently intoxicated pilot was pulled from the cockpit of his Delta Air Lines jet as he prepared to fly from Amsterdam to Newark on Tuesday, officials said.
The 52-year-old captain from Woodbury, N.J., blew a .023 percent blood alcohol level in a breath test, according to the National Police Corps in Amsterdam. That level is just above the legal limit in the Netherlands, which has some of the toughest drunk driving laws in Europe.
Delta issued a statement on its website and then posted via Twitter, saying Flight No. 35 was canceled “out of concern that a crew member appeared to be unfit for duty."
The airline said its alcohol policy "is among the strictest in the industry and we have no tolerance for violations."
The captain has been suspended pending the outcome of investigations by the airline and the Netherlands, Delta said. Passengers were reassigned to other flights.
While the Netherlands has harsh drunk driving laws, they are not as tough as the FAA’s. The agency, which is looking into this incident, says a pilot cannot fly a plane with a blood alcohol level higher than .018.
That's far below the legal limit for driving in most states, which is .08.
If the FAA finds that the pilot attempted to take off with a blood alcohol level of .023, the pilot could lose his medical certificate -- and his ability to fly.
Delta said it has started its own investigation as well as cooperating with local Amsterdam authorities, according to the airline’s statement.
-- WSB Radio reporter Pete Combs and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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