{"id":34245,"date":"2026-01-02T15:04:39","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T15:04:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=34245"},"modified":"2026-01-02T15:04:39","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T15:04:39","slug":"canada-asks-air-india-to-probe-pilot-removed-over-alcohol-use","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=34245","title":{"rendered":"Canada asks Air India to probe pilot removed over alcohol use"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>Canada\u2019s transport regulator has asked Air India to investigate an incident in which a pilot was removed from an aircraft before takeoff after being found under the influence of alcohol, a person familiar with the matter said.<\/p>\n<p>Two breathalyser tests conducted by Canadian police at Vancouver International Airport showed the pilot was unfit for duty, the source said on Friday. Transport Canada described the incident as a \u201cserious matter\u201d in a letter to Air India and is likely to pursue enforcement action, the person added. The source requested anonymity as they were not authorised to speak to the media. Transport Canada did not respond to an emailed request for comment outside regular working hours.<\/p>\n<p>In a statement, Air India said the flight from Vancouver to Delhi on Dec. 23 experienced a last-minute delay due to the incident and that an alternate pilot was brought in to operate the flight. The airline said Canadian authorities raised concerns about the pilot\u2019s fitness for duty but did not provide further details.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe pilot has been taken off flying duties during the process of enquiry. Air India maintains a zero-tolerance policy towards any violation of applicable rules and regulations,\u201d the airline said. \u201cPending the outcome of the investigation, any confirmed violation will attract strict disciplinary action in line with company policy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The aircraft involved was a Boeing 777, a model that can seat up to 344 passengers, according to the websites of Flightradar24 and Air India.<\/p>\n<p>The letter from Transport Canada official Ajit Oommen asked Air India to submit its findings and details of steps taken to prevent future occurrences by Jan. 26, the source said.<\/p>\n<p>Air India has been under heightened scrutiny since a June 12 crash involving a Boeing Dreamliner that killed 260 people. India\u2019s aviation regulator has flagged multiple safety lapses at the airline, which was government-owned until 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Pilots at Air India, owned by Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, have also come under scrutiny. This week, India\u2019s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) sent warning notices to four Air India pilots, citing \u201cserious safety concerns\u201d related to regulatory compliance and flight crew decision-making.<\/p>\n<p>The DGCA said the pilots accepted an aircraft for operation last year despite prior knowledge of \u201crepeated snags\u201d and \u201cexisting systems degradations,\u201d according to warning notices dated Dec. 29 seen by Reuters. The aircraft involved was a Boeing 787 used for long-haul flights, according to Flightradar24.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this year, the DGCA proposed tighter rules on alcohol testing for crew members, including a measure that would permanently revoke a pilot\u2019s licence after three positive tests. Current rules require post-flight breathalyser examinations at the first port of landing in India. Canadian regulations prohibit pilots from operating an aircraft within 12 hours of consuming alcohol.<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Canada\u2019s transport regulator has asked Air India to investigate an incident in which a pilot was removed from an aircraft before takeoff after being found under the influence of alcohol, a person familiar with the matter said. Two breathalyser tests conducted by Canadian police at Vancouver International Airport showed the pilot was unfit for duty, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34245","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34245","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=34245"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34245\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=34245"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=34245"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=34245"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}