Delta pilot walking through airport terminal.Photo:Charlie Riedel/AP
Charlie Riedel/AP
A Delta pilot has been sentenced to ten months in jail after he reported for duty intoxicated at Edinburgh Airport in Scotland.
The bag allegedly contained “two bottles of Jägermeister, one of which was open and was just under half full,” per the statement. Police officers were then contacted and Russell, who told them he was a pilot for Delta Airlines, was immediately ordered to give a breath sample and failed.
Per the statement, the Delta pilot told officers that he had been drinking the night before. After failing the breath test, he was arrested and taken to Livingston Police Office where he agreed to give a blood sample.
Edinburgh Airport.Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty
Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty
The sample revealed that the “proportion of alcohol” in Russell’s blood exceeded Scotland’s limit of 20 milligrams. According to theCode of Federal Regulationsin the U.S., it is prohibited for pilots to fly if the alcohol concentration reaches 0.04 grams per deciliter in a blood or breath sample.
It is also illegal to pilot a plane “within 8 hours after the consumption of any alcoholic beverage” according to the Code.
Delta airplane.Getty
Getty
In a statement shared with PEOPLE, a Delta spokesperson said: “Delta was aware of this incident and removed the pilot from service while conducting a thorough investigation in coordination with Scottish authorities.”
Livingston Police Office has not yet responded to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Sentencing Sheriff Alison Stirling gave Russell a 10-month prison sentence at the Edinburgh Sheriff Court on March 5 for attempting to pilot the Boeing 767 aircraft after drinking. The initial 15-month sentence was shortened because Russell “pled guilty at the earliest opportunity.”
The statement also reveals that the former Delta pilot was previously diagnosed with Severe Alcohol Use Disorder and was in remission after completing treatment at the time of his arrest.
source: people.com
