American Airlines Flight Delayed for Pilot Drink Test

An American Airlines pilot was accused of being drunk on the job on Wednesday, which ended up delaying a Dallas-Fort Worth to Cancun flight for about 4 hours. Airline officials were alerted to the issue by a flight attendant that was suspicious of the pilot.

The Dallas-Fort Worth-Cancun services was set to take off at 4:30pm, but the pilot had to be removed for a blood-alcohol test. The airline didn’t say whether he passed or failed the test, but reported by some media outlets that he passed.

American Airlines spokeswoman Mary Sanderson said that safety is their top priority. If there’s ever any suspicion that a crew member has been drinking alcohol while on duty, it is standard procedure that they are removed from the plane and replaced so that the aircraft and its passengers can depart, she explained.

The flight was carrying 161 passengers, who were given the option of getting off of or staying on the plane while the carrier found a replacement pilot. The customers were also given a $10 food voucher they could use at the airport. Then the service was rescheduled to take off at 6:45pm, but severe weather caused a further wait, so the flight didn’t actually get to leave until after 8pm.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) isn’t involved in the current investigation, but spokesman Lynn Lunsford said that they know about the situation and are waiting for the airline to conduct their own internal probe before stepping in. It’s illegal to drink alcohol within 8 hours of flying, he added.