Reinforcing aviation safety protocols and regulatory crackdowns, Tata Group-owned Air India has placed one of its first officers under suspension after he failed a mandatory pre-flight breathalyzer test at Zurich Airport. Scheduled to operate flight AI151 bound for the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi on September 6, the co-pilot was pulled from active duty minutes before boarding commenced after aerodrome officials detected signs of intoxication. With no immediate relief pilot available on-station in Switzerland, the intercontinental long-haul service had to be cancelled for the day, forcing hundreds of stranded flyers to wait overnight until replacement crew arrangements permitted the wide-body aircraft to finally depart for New Delhi the following afternoon.
Grounded at Zurich: Second Medical Test Underway as Airline Enforces Zero Tolerance
According to formal disclosures issued by carrier officials, the first officer failed his baseline pre-flight breath alcohol screening administered inside the terminal:
Repatriation and Immediate Grounding: Following the failed initial test, local authorities administered a secondary confirmatory medical examination in Zurich, whose comprehensive laboratory findings remain awaited; in the interim, the co-pilot was stripped of flying credentials, de-rostered, and flown back to India strictly as a passenger.
Firm Regulatory Policy: Reaffirming its operational guidelines, an Air India spokesperson stated that the airline adheres strictly to a zero-tolerance policy regarding breaches of safety regulations, adding that verified non-compliance results in immediate suspension and punitive measures in accordance with Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) norms.
Passenger Inconvenience: The sudden removal of the flight deck crew member prevented flight AI151 from meeting its mandatory departure slot, prompting hotel accommodations for stranded travelers before the flight resumed operations the following day.
Successive Safety Breaches: Tightening Mandatory Dope Testing Across All Flight Crews
The Zurich airport incident represents the second major drug-and-alcohol controversy to hit the airline in recent weeks, following a severe mid-air safety scare on August 4:
The Phuket-Delhi Turbulence Episode: Weeks prior, an Air India flight inbound from Phuket to New Delhi experienced a sudden, uncontrolled loss of altitude mid-flight, resulting in severe injuries to more than 20 passengers and cabin crew members during clear-air turbulence.
Positive Cannabis Screenings: Subsequent mandatory medical screening of the operating commander revealed two successive positive tests for cannabis (marijuana) metabolites, resulting in the pilot’s immediate summary dismissal from the carrier.
Fleet-Wide Surveillance: Triggered by recurring non-compliance incidents, Air India’s flight safety wing has institutionalized stringent, unannounced random drug and alcohol screenings across all operational bases, subjecting domestic and international flight crews to strict sobriety verification prior to flight clearances.