On Thursday evening armed police were called to remove a drunken pilot from a British Airways flight at Gatwick Airport.
The Boeing 777 was meant to take off at 8:20pm and arrive in Mauritius within the next 11 hours.
The 49 year old from West London would have taken the controls for a significant part of the flight. Colleagues of the pilot had said they were worried and believed that they could smell alcohol on him. One dialled 999 as they feared that the 300 passengers and crew who were being carried were in danger.
It is alarming to imagine what could’ve happened if the police were not called however, a stand-in pilot was located and the plane left Gatwick Airport, Horley at 10:56pm, landing in Mauritius at 2:07pm local time. British Airways have confirmed that they are taking matters ‘very seriously’.
The pilot has remained in custody since his arrest.
What are your thoughts?
Ellice Odeli-Ojo, Dunraven School.
