Norway jails pilot who failed breath test

Norway jails pilot who failed breath test

A Norwegian court has sentenced a Latvian pilot to 10 months in prison for failing a blood alcohol test at Oslo Airport last month.

The pilot, who had earlier been fired by Latvia-based airBaltic, was convicted of endangering air traffic safety, public broadcaster NRK reported on Monday.

He had a blood alcohol level of 0.54 parts per thousand, compared with Norway’s legal limit of 0.2 parts per thousand when tested on August 7.

The prosecution had requested a year-long prison sentence.

Acting on a tip, police tested the blood alcohol content of the crew members, shortly before their Crete-bound charter plane was due to take off from Oslo.

After failing initial breathalyser tests they were apprehended and underwent blood tests.

The Ovre Romerike district court in south-eastern Norway Monday also said that the 50-year-old pilot had been drinking alcohol less than eight hours before duty, and had failed to ensure that other crew members were fit to fly.

Three other crew members were sentenced last month. One of two female cabin attendants received a 45-day jail term, the other was sentenced to 60 days. The co-pilot has, however, appealed his six-month sentence.

The more than 100 passengers affected by the incident were flown to Crete by a replacement crew.

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