Ministry raps JAL for pilot drinking, flight delays
Japan’s transport ministry on Wednesday reprimanded Japan Airlines Co. (JAL) and urged it to report back on preventive measures it will take after an incident in which a pilot was unable to fly from Hawaii to Japan after failing a preflight alcohol screening, delaying three flights for hours.
The major Japanese air carrier has in recent years faced multiple similar drinking incidents involving its pilots, and it comes after a previous warning given to JAL in December by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
The ministry said JAL employees lacked due consideration for safety, urging the company to compile measures by the end of the month to prevent a repeat.
“We take this issue very seriously and deeply apologize for causing trouble and worries,” JAL president Mitsuko Tottori told a press conference, adding that her company will fire the pilot.
60 tests
Tottori said JAL would carry out stricter monitoring and use health data and other criteria in determining whether pilots can fly. Four of the company’s pilots were suspended from flying, she said.
In the latest case, the pilot consumed three pints of beer—568 milliliters each—a day before his flight on Aug. 28 from Honolulu to Chubu airport near Nagoya.
The next morning, the captain used his testing kit about 60 times, with every result showing the presence of alcohol. He then changed the dates of some of the tests in an attempt to show they were performed earlier.
Before his flight, he notified the company that he was feeling unwell, admitting that he had drunk the day before and that his testing kit was indicating the presence of alcohol.
Close monitoring
He was taken off duty, causing the flight he was due to pilot to be delayed for about two hours. Two other flights bound for Tokyo’s Haneda airport from Honolulu were also delayed for over 18 hours.
He had been flagged by the airline as someone who needed close monitoring after he was found with a below-threshold level of alcohol seven years ago. He vowed at the time to quit drinking, according to JAL.
The pilot broke internal rules set by JAL in December after different pilots were found to have attempted to conceal excessive drinking before a flight from Melbourne in Australia to Narita near Tokyo. The transport ministry subsequently issued JAL a business improvement advisory.
