American Pilot Jailed for Attempting To Fly While Intoxicated

(NewsInsights.org) – Governments hold airline pilots to higher standards because they take responsibility for passengers’ lives. They learn early in their training that impairment isn’t an option, and the rule of thumb is 12 hours between bottle and throttle while still practicing moderation. An American commercial pilot seems to have forgotten all the rules, but he’ll have time to study as he serves a 10-month jail sentence in Scotland.

Captain Lawrence Russell, a Delta Airlines pilot, showed up to pilot a flight from Edinburgh to New York City on the morning of June 16, 2023. During a routine search of his carry-on luggage, security found two bottles of Jägermeister liquor. One of the bottles was half empty.

When questioned, Russell said he hadn’t taken a drink recently but had imbibed the previous evening. Airport authorities asked him to take a breath test and found a level of 49 milligrams (mg) of alcohol in 100 milliliters (dL) of blood. That translates to a US Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) of 0.049%. The legal limit for pilots in Scotland is 20 mg/dL, or 0.020% BAC. Not only did Russell fail the breath test, but he was more than twice the legal limit for pilots in Scotland. By comparison, the US limits pilots to a BAC of 0.040%.

After the breath test, Scottish law enforcement took the pilot into custody, and Delta had to cancel the flight. The airline demoted Russell from the flight line but is maintaining him as an employee at half his salary on long-term disability while he seeks treatment for a diagnosis of severe alcohol use disorder.

Sheriff Alison Stirling acted as the Edinburgh Sheriff’s Court judge on Tuesday, March 19, sentencing him to 10 months incarceration as “the only appropriate disposal” for his “serious” offense. She noted that although this appeared to be his first professional offense, the 63-year-old father of two had received multiple DUI citations.

Russell could reapply for an aviation medical certificate after completing his jail term. If granted, he could seek reinstatement to his former position as an airline captain.