Passengers aboard a United Airlines flight preparing to leave London's Heathrow Airport for San Francisco were startled this week when their pilot was hauled from the cockpit in handcuffs. Police said the man who was preparing to fly the Boeing 777 halfway around the world was drunk.
The pilot was identified only as a 44-year old man. Police reportedly boarded the plane after being tipped off by a member of the airport's ground crew.
"United's alcohol policy is among the strictest in the industry and we have no tolerance for abuse of violation of this well-established policy," the airline said in a statement. "Safety is out number one priority and the pilot has been removed from service while we are co-operating with authorities and conducting a full investigation."
One passenger told The Sun, a London newspaper, that two police officers rushed onboard the aircraft and entered the cockpit, emerging seconds later with the pilot in tow.
"We couldn't believe what we were seeing," the passenger told the newspaper.
Airlines and aviation regulators have strict prohibitions against drinking and flying. The legal limit for pilots is nine micrograms of alcohol in 100 milliliters of breath, which is three times more strict that most limits on operating an automobile.
