Two Russian pilots have been fined after they were caught preparing to take charge of a flight from Manchester Airport to Moscow after they had been drinking, the Telegraph reports. Mikhail Danilstsev, 47 and Andrey Lyubimov, 56, were arrested at the airport after staff noticed they were smelling of alcohol and 'the night before'.
Father-of-two Danilstsev, a captain with Russian airline Aeroflot and father-of-three Lyubimov, a co-pilot, had each drunk four pints of beer the night before and assumed when they got up at 02:00 they would be safe to fly. Mr Lyubimov claimed the beer the two men were drinking in a hotel tasted 'very watery' compared to the type they usually drink in Russia. Tests showed the pair - who have 41 years aviation service between them - were seven points over the alcohol limit for flying.
The Boeing 767 they were due to fly home was a ferry flight and had no passengers on board. The pilots claimed the flight would have been late taking off due to technical problems and they might have been under the limit by the time they were cleared to fly.
At Minshull Street Crown Court yesterday Mr Danilstsev and Mr Lyubimov, both from Moscow, admitted preparing to fly a plane at a time when their ability was impaired due to alcohol. They were each fined £2,500 each and ordered to pay costs of £150. The airline has sacked both men. |
