Drunk Pilot, Not a Big Deal?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/4448262/Aeroflot...

By Adrian Blomfield, Moscow Correspondent
Last Updated: 3:39PM GMT 03 Feb 2009

The extraordinary claim followed a mutiny by over 100 passengers at Moscow airport. They demanded that the flight crew of a New York-bound Boeing 767 be replaced after the pilot had appeared on the aircraft's tannoy apparently slurring and stumbling over his words.

Captain Alexander Cheplevsky, who had allegedly celebrated his birthday the previous day according to one Russian newspaper, seemed barely coherent and repeated the words "duration of the flight" three times, passengers were quoted as saying.

But when they raised their concerns with the cabin crew, they were told to "stop making trouble" or get off the aircraft, which was preparing for take off from Moscow's Sheremetevo airport on Dec 28.

As anxiety mounted and passengers refused to take their seats, Aeroflot representatives boarded the aircraft with a message of reassurance.

"It's not such a big deal if the pilot is drunk," one representative said, according to the English-language Moscow Times, which had a reporter on board.

"Really, all he has to do is press a button and the plane flies itself. The worst that could happen is he'll trip over something in the cockpit."

Thirty minutes into the impasse, Capt Cheplevsky emerged from the cockpit. Passengers alleged that he was red-faced, had bloodshot eyes and appeared unsteady on his feet.

Attempting to intercede in the dispute, he made passengers an offer, saying: "I'll sit here quietly in a corner. We have three more pilots. I won't even touch the controls, I promise."

With airline officials refusing to budge, matters were taken in hand by Ksenia Sobchak, a Russian celebrity and It-girl whose father was mentor to Vladimir Putin, the prime minister.

From her seat in first class, she telephoned Aeroflot, who appeared more amenable than they had to ordinary passengers, the Moscow Times reported.

After three hours, a new crew was brought aboard and the aircraft flew to New York.

A spokesman for Aerfolot confirmed that passengers on the flight to New York had registered a complaint that led to the replacement of the flight deck crew but denied that the captain was drunk.

"The pilot was tested for alcohol but none was found," said Irina Dannenberg. "He was so upset that he developed high blood pressure and has been in hospital ever since."

Whether true or not, the incident will do damage to an airline that is trying to recover from being dubbed Aeroflop by long-suffering passengers.

But Aeroflot's reputation suffered a further blow on Tuesday after investigators revealed that the captain of an aircraft that crashed on a domestic flight in September, killing all 88 onboard, had alcohol in his system.

In 1994, an aircraft operated by Aeroflot crashed in Siberia after the captain allowed his 15-year-old son to take over the controls. The boy accidentally overrode the autopilot, sending the aircraft into tailspin. All 75 on board died.

The latest incident sparked heated debate on Russian radio talks shows, with many callers saying they did not believe a pilot needed to be sober to fly a commercial aircraft.