Delta Air Lines Pilot Arrested On Suspicion Of Intoxication

Source: NurPhoto / Getty

Delta Pilot Gets Escorted Off Plane On Suspicion Of Intoxication

A pilot was escorted off of an aircraft before being arrested on Tuesday, after a TSA staff member smelled alcohol on his breath and suspected that he was intoxicated.

37-year-old Gabriel Lyle Schroeder was in the cockpit of a fully boarded plane on a Delta Air Lines flight from Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport to San Diego. He was conducting pre-flight checks when the Airport Police Department intervened and arrested him.

Suspicions arose about the pilot when he backtracked and left a security screening area, according to an arrest report provided to Yahoo Lifestyle by Metropolitan Airports Commission spokesperson Patrick Hoger. It happened once he realized that TSA officers were performing additional screenings in the “Known Crew Members” line.

After being arrested, Schroeder was found to be in possession of “an alcoholic container” and was suspected to be impaired. The pilot was charged for being under the influence “of alcohol/drugs” as an aircraft operator, but has since been released, pending toxicology reports and a subsequent formal complaint.

The case is still under investigation.

In a statement provided to the publication, Delta Air Lines confirms that it is working with authorities to address the incident.

“Delta’s alcohol policy is among the strictest in the industry and we have no tolerance for violation,” the statement reads. “Delta is cooperating with local authorities in their investigation.”

The flight was delayed approximately an hour as a replacement crew member was called in.