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Transatlantic Delta Flight Canceled After Pilot Fails Breathalyzer

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(@lucky)
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A Delta Air Lines flight yesterday wascanceledfor apretty concerning reason…

Continue reading: Transatlantic Delta Flight Canceled After Pilot Fails Breathalyzer

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83 Replies
(@Aaron)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 401

Ok but UA and AA something something worse something something DL leads in profits something something getting new planes something something best lounges in the US something something.


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(@Eskimo)
Joined: 9 years ago

Posts: 6197

According to Tim Dunn, it was a Premium alcohol in the system.


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 Ole
(@Ole)
Joined: 9 years ago

Posts: 357

Here to see how TD spins this.


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(@Mike R.)
Joined: 2 years ago

Posts: 4

0.02 is quite low, much less than one standard drink (or maybe two drinks, but many many hours ago). For a smaller person, might even be a bit of residual mouthwash. I'll withhold judgment in this case without knowing more.


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(@Thomas Maldives)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 1

Too bad Delta pilots don't have a union that will save her job. Delta pilots love their booze!


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 Bbt
(@Bbt)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 1

I want the people flying my aircraft to be alcohol free. I commend European authorities for having this law. Given the amount of flying that we do, we should have this kind of law in US as well.


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(@Nasir)
Joined: 7 years ago

Posts: 128

@Thomas Maldives
Get ready to be lectured by Tim Dunn.


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(@Dim Tunn)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 200

here's the thing about this that you have to remember. Delta actually has the highest industry PAASM (pilot alcohol per available seat mile) - WAY higher than United which is focused solely on getting their pilots flying places. Delta understands that what matters is getting their pilots DRUNK and flying places! Plus they fly the A350 which is the greatest aircraft ever invented. United could never.


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 Samo
(@Samo)
Joined: 9 years ago

Posts: 1414

*In this situation, regulations limit pilots to a blood alcohol level of 0.02, compared to the legal limit of 0.08 for driving." - The limit for driving in Sweden is 0.02 = equal to flying, not 0.08.


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(@JustinDev)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 939

@Dim Tunn
@ Thomas Maldives
@ Nasir
@ Ole
@ Eskimo
@ Aaron

I'm curious, did all of you ask Tim Dunn for a date and he turned you down or something? I do not understand why you have given one man so much power over you that you wait with baited breath for his every utterings. So very bizarre.


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(@JustinDev)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 939

Safety first. Perhaps more random tests should be performed. This is concerning. How many others are flying while being impaired.

When will DL and UA going to get rid of those nearly 30 year planes. Are they still competitive compared to the B787s and A350s or even the A339s


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(@pstm91)
Joined: 5 years ago

Member
Posts: 799

The people commenting about Tim Dunn on any and every post that even mentions DL have become more annoying than TD himself.


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(@Eskimo)
Joined: 9 years ago

Posts: 6197

@JustinDev

I'm curious, did you ask
@Dim Tunn
@ Thomas Maldives
@ Nasir
@ Ole
@ Aaron
for a date and they turned you down or something? I do not understand why you have given group of men so much power over you that you wait with baited breath for their every utterings. So very bizarre.


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(@Powerball Winner)
Joined: 7 years ago

Posts: 243

100%. As soon as I can tell it's a comment targeted at him I just quit reading. It's not that hard to simply ignore him if you don't agree or like him.


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 Tim
(@Tim)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 1

Thank you for your comment.
Americans thinking their local laws apply to other countries....


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(@Duck Ling)
Joined: 10 years ago

Posts: 516

Regarding EU261 compensation, there are exemptions for airlines paying out in certain circumstances. Mainly where the airline can claim it was an event outside their control.

I would imagine that the 'because the pilot was drunk' has not been tested in Europe before. Will be interesting to see the outcome.


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(@Dim Tunn)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 200

I feel like I’ve been pretty clear that I’m trying to bully him into self-harming?


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Diamond
(@tim-dunn)
Joined: 5 years ago

Member
Posts: 7468

Despite the fixation that some have with me, it is precisely because there have been multiple cases of pilots attempting to fly while not passing a breathalyzer that these types of laws exist.

as for the 767 comments, DL's 767 fleet is young than UA's. and DL is retiring them for now with new 330-900s and might do so finish the job with 787s.


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(@CPHflyer01)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 27

The legal limit for driving in Sweden is 0.02 (not 0.08 as stated). As the flights was originating in Sweden it would natural to take this as the reference point


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(@CPHflyer01)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 27

As strikes are considered within the airlines control (tried and tested) - then it would be very hard for Delta to argue that their own crew members can not follow the company's policies (nor the law). It is definetely EU261


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Diamond
(@parnel)
Joined: 4 years ago

Member
Posts: 155

Can't wait for Tim, to spin this, I'm sure it's United's fault.


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(@James)
Joined: 5 years ago

Posts: 377

Dim Tunn - this ain’t cool. You may spin it as humor but i personally don’t think we should be joking about bullying or self harm.


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(@Dim Tunn)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 200
 E39
Diamond
(@e39)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 311

Scott Kirby obviously spiked the pilot’s drink duh-uh


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(@Duck Ling)
Joined: 10 years ago

Posts: 516

Strikes are only considered where it is the airlines direct employees that strike as they are still considered within an airlines control.

If a flight is cancelled because of say a third party ground handler strike EU261 does not apply.

There is no test case for a drunk pilot but there is for a pilot that has gone sick resulting in a cancelled flight. EU261 does not apply to sickness of crew if the airline can prove the sickness was part of a wider extraordinary circumstance such as deliberate sabotage or criminal action. So this one will be a very grey (or gray) area.


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 E39
Diamond
(@e39)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 311

P R E M I U M


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(@Dim Tunn)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 200

that's my gag.


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(@Voian)
Joined: 2 years ago

Posts: 267

… or maybe she ate 15 kilos of apples before the flight and they started fermenting into cider… as plausible as the mouthwash theory 😉


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(@travelwithdavid)
Joined: 3 years ago

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Posts: 0
Diamond
(@hodor)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 63

It's not that easy, either. He vomits all over the comment sections with walls of text and "analysis".


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(@travelwithdavid)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 0

It’s actually the most pathetic thing.


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(@travelwithdavid)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 0

It’s actually the most pathetic thing.


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(@travelwithdavid)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 0

It is. Many of us scroll past. A lot of them enjoy taunting him and it’s actually annoying because a lot of times they’ll bring him up first and then try to clown him when he responds.


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(@travelwithdavid)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 0

They all have nothing going on in their life so that’s why they spend their days taunting a stranger online.


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(@travelwithdavid)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 0

@ Dim Tunn. That’s a joke in very poor taste. How sick can you be?


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(@justindev)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 939

@ Duck Ling

I do not believe this is at all a gray area as extraordinary circumstances have been defined as events outside the airline's control, such as severe weather or air traffic strikes.

The crew behaviour is most definitely the airline’s responsibility, because crew availability, pilot fitness etc are within the control of every airline as this is down to employee management.

EU261 definitely applies.


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(@Julie)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 88

I am allowed to obsess over Tim Dunn however I want!

It's totally normal and not weird, just like accusing everyone of being a Tim Dunn alt account.

Also I will reply to myself and claim it's a fake account and then like the comment with burners to signal boost it!

-- Real Julie


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(@Dim Tunn)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 200

apparently "very" to "quite?"


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(@Premium Sobriety: Delta's Latest Revenue Stream)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 1

Delta's AI pricing just got smarter - it now charges you extra for flights where the pilots are actually sober. 'Responsible crew operation' is apparently a premium feature now.


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(@Aaron)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 401

The idea of asking TD out on a date just made me throw up in my mouth…


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(@Julia)
Joined: 11 years ago

Posts: 985

Nah, you created whatever fixation people may have of you. You’re like Candyman, all Lucky has to do is post an article about DL and you will be summoned…


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(@PHLPhlyer)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 6

Of course Delta pilots have a union. Why would you think they didn’t?


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(@Dim Tunn)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 200
(@Dim Tunn)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 200

wish i had thought of this, well dunn


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(@Eskimo)
Joined: 9 years ago

Posts: 6197

Just to add...

No one has brought up the 767.

This is typical Tim and why many of us like to talk about him.

Can't stop the fluff.


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(@Julia)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 48

And the irony is that I could say that about myself too!

I am super fixated on responding to Tim all the time. In fact, that makes up for the overwhelming majority of my comments!


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(@Julie)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 88

Don't forget about my alts

@Julie
@Mason


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Diamond
(@tim-dunn)
Joined: 5 years ago

Member
Posts: 7468

well, yes, "767" was mentioned in the article and people commented about it in the comments.

and no, Julia, it is clear that there are people that came running to respond to the article about DL thinking they were going to belittle and wound me long before I wrote a word.

I live rent free in the minds of a whole lot of people and those people are the ones whose identities are attached to their "beloved" airline and not me.

It is always sad to see people unable to control their habits and behavior whether we are talking about alcohol or a need to post to a social media forum.

It is precisely because I sit back and watch fools like you get it out of your system that there is ample proof that it is you, not me, that lacks control.

you, a number of other people on here, and this pilot need help. thankfully, the Delta pilot union has worked hard w/ the company to help pilots who request help.
I have no idea what venues you have but you would do well to spend less time here and more time figuring out those opportunities - and then use them.


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(@K Helldoge)
Joined: 7 years ago

Posts: 20

Another DEI hire. Drunk Entitled Idiot


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(@Julia)
Joined: 11 years ago

Posts: 985

Aw, I wonder who posted that comment about me…whoever it is, please go ahead and list all the times I have been fixated on Tim.

“Julia, it is clear that there are people that came running to respond to the article about DL thinking they were going to belittle and wound me long before I wrote a word.”

Most of these people like myself were already visiting and commenting on this long before you are your DL fetish showed up.

“I live rent free in the minds of a whole lot of people and those people are the ones whose identities are attached to their "beloved" airline and not me.”

Oh dear. Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt…your behavior on this site is what causes people to react to you the way they do.


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(@Jacques Portgieter)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 49

Back of the envelope calc: If a 140 lb woman stopped drinking at 10 PM and still blew 0.02% at 9 AM, she likely consumed about 7 drinks (+/- 1) within 2-4hrs (over dinner, perhaps?) before calling it a night. That's quite a lot IMHO if you know you have to be up at around 6am at your hotel to get to the airport and fly a plane. I would never do this - my rule is 16hrs bottle to throttle, and I even push this out to 24hrs in some circumstances. I regard this as irresponsible behaviour from the pilot and I am in favour of mandatory breath-testing for the airlines + random testing on the roads. Airlines could be proactive about it and install the breath lock devices if they took it seriously, but I suppose the unions might have something to say about that. I do think that .02 could be raised to .04, but at the end of the day... don't drink and fly.


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Diamond
(@eduardo_br)
Joined: 2 years ago

Member
Posts: 149

Guys, really … Could we all just stop replying to Tim ? He clearly has deep mental issues, there’s no point in trying to argue with the deluded stuff that his mind produces. Just let him write the things he writes, and if people want to take that as real info, so bet it. That’s how the internet is. It’s better than having this back and forth with someone who clearly needs medical help and it’s incapable of having a rational discussion. JUST IGNORE HIM.


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(@Julia)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 48

No! I am the one with deep mental issues.

Anytime someone disagrees with me, I will accuse them of being a Tim Dunn alt account!


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(@Regis)
Joined: 6 years ago

Posts: 424

What will happen to this pilot professionally-wise? Will she lose her job or lesser penalties are applied? Does this incident impacts her license in any way?


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(@ImmortalSynn)
Joined: 7 years ago

Posts: 938

What are you talking about? The legal limit is the same in the US.


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Diamond
(@tim-dunn)
Joined: 5 years ago

Member
Posts: 7468

The FAA does have a program for pilots to request help w/ addiction issues and Delta and ALPA support it.

The question is whether they can participate if they are already in the cockpit rather than having asked for help before they boarded the aircraft.

There was a United pilot that did something similar and had to spend time in jail overseas but eventually got back to the US.

This is bad enough in your own country but much worse overseas.


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(@Julia)
Joined: 11 years ago

Posts: 985

Lol whoever that is posting as me, you keep doing you.

You also seem to not be able to tell the difference between Julie and Julia.


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(@Anon lawyer)
Joined: 12 years ago

Posts: 140

She will probably be fired, and her career is likely done as a major airline pilot. The programs Tim refers to are for crew to seek help with substance abuse issues before they have an incident like this.

If there's a silver lining for her, it's that this happened in Sweden, not the United States. The US criminal justice system is much more harsh, and pilots who fail breathalyzers in the US are frequently charged with a federal crime. I'm not familiar with how Sweden in particular handles this, but even if they bring criminal charges, I'd sure as hell rather deal with the Swedish criminal justice system than the American one.


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 Ole
(@Ole)
Joined: 9 years ago

Posts: 357

I am sucking upto him so that he agrees to take me under his wings. I have so much to learn from him.


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 Ole
(@Ole)
Joined: 9 years ago

Posts: 357

@Julia, you are wrong. Any article about any airline (Tim is good, he isn’t picky about competition), will be enough for Tim


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Diamond
(@tim-dunn)
Joined: 5 years ago

Member
Posts: 7468

other sites are reporting that she requested and was given a second test which showed her levels were within legal limits.


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(@Julia)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 48

I got so confused with my alts that I didn't realize Julia was replying to Julia, but now I accidentally exposed myself as using alt accounts like Julie!


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(@Robert)
Joined: 8 years ago

Posts: 41

Yes, this should be an easy EU261 claim. I wouldn't bet my life on it though but I would bet a hefty chunk of change that Delta stonewall and flat out deny the claim but some cooked up BS excuse.


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(@Robert)
Joined: 8 years ago

Posts: 41

I see your point but it's a US airline on a US web site primarily read by people in the US. Hence the reference to the .08 as most of us can relate to that easily.


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(@Premium Sobriety: Delta's Latest Revenue Stream)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 1

Haha thanks bruv. Never seen someone carry the water for a corp like Timmy. Hope Delta is paying him well


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(@jedipenguin)
Joined: 7 years ago

Posts: 120

And white males have never flown drunk?


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Gold
(@nickw)
Joined: 1 year ago

Member
Posts: 45

I get that what happened here is serious and concerning, but I still think Delta handled it the right way. They followed EU protocol, removed the pilot immediately, and canceled the flight rather than risking safety, which is exactly what I want to see from an airline. One person’s mistake doesn’t change the fact that Delta consistently leads the industry in operational performance, customer satisfaction, and profitability. What frustrates me is how quickly people use this to bash Delta while giving other airlines a pass for similar or even worse incidents. There have been alcohol related issues at UA and AA too, but somehow those don’t draw the same fire. And yes, I’ve noticed the fixation on Tim Dunn. While I don’t agree with everything he says, at least he brings actual info. It’s odd how much effort people spend mocking him instead of engaging with the issue. I’d be more interested to hear whether others think the US should move toward EU style alcohol testing for flight crews...is that a needed step forward or taking things too far?


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 Pete
(@Pete)
Joined: 10 years ago

Posts: 1478

Compensation issues aside, it's not difficult to abstain from drinking booze for a 24-36 hour layover. I doubt this woman has a drinking problem, she's just an idiot. Either way her days as a commercial pilot should be over.


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 Pete
(@Pete)
Joined: 10 years ago

Posts: 1478

I have a feeling they're all the same person. The same sad, lonely, desperately pathetic person.


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Diamond
(@bradstpete)
Joined: 5 years ago

Member
Posts: 600

that is what I have heard as well


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Diamond
(@eduardo_br)
Joined: 2 years ago

Member
Posts: 149

@Ben I know that you can’t spend all day monitoring this stuff, but I really think that tracking down the IP’s from registered users that use fake accounts and banning them for good would greatly increase the quality of the comment section.


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(@Rrapynot)
Joined: 6 years ago

Posts: 342

You are right that many travellers won’t be aware of the compensation. The does in fact require airlines to explain those rights to you. But they rarely do.


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(@rrapynot)
Joined: 6 years ago

Posts: 342

The pilot was arrested by the police. Delta didn’t act responsibly, they had no choice.


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(@DL205 passenger)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 2

Hi guys - w.r.t. compensation, I was on this cancelled flight and DL sent an email offering comp of a $320 voucher. However this contradicts the pamphlet they handed out at check-in which implied that we should be entitled to either €600 in cash or €800 in travel vouchers. Does the nature of the cancellation reason factor into this discrepancy? Or are they just trying to screw us? I've filed a complaint through their website as suggested by the pamphlet asking for the €600 in cash, but after receiving the voucher email I wonder if it'll get rejected.


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(@bossa)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 550

I thought US airlines already conduct random drug/alcohol tests....


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(@bossa)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 550

You betcha ! In addition to unlimited free transportation, free alcohol in any class of service !
... lol


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(@bossa)
Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 550

And 'Drunk Entitled Idiot' definitely applies to whyte boiz as well !


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Gold
(@karmatourer)
Joined: 3 years ago

Member
Posts: 70

He’s just crying out for attention.


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Diamond
(@wpcoe)
Joined: 5 years ago

Member
Posts: 119

I have been retired for 15 years, but when I was flying for a US carrier, only random drug (urine) tests were administered, and they were administered *after* the flight. And random drug tests could only be performed on US soil. I wonder if that has changed by now?


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Diamond
(@wpcoe)
Joined: 5 years ago

Member
Posts: 119

I don't know how it works at DL, but for UA, many folks had discussed this on a FlyerTalk forum, and whatever UA offered without prompting had no effect on applying for EU 261 compensation. i.e If UA offered you $250, you get to keep that $250 in addition to any applicable mandatory EU 261 compensation.


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 AJO
Diamond
(@ajo)
Joined: 4 years ago

Member
Posts: 97

Probably because the first one wasn't a premium alcohol test but one provided by UA.


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(@DL205 passenger)
Joined: 1 year ago

Posts: 2

Got it, thanks!


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 Sam
(@Sam)
Joined: 5 years ago

Posts: 183

Hi Eskimo or whatever your real name is...


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