Drunk pilot pleads guilty

[Officer of Engineers]

There is no federal regulation that prohibits a doctor from working while using Prozac or some other anti-depressant. Yet if a pilot is depressed, he loses his job. Once you lose your medical, to get it back is almost impossible, and when it does happen, it takes years.

Colonel,

I find this to be eye openning. Majors Harry Schmidt and William Umbach admitted under oath that they were issued stimulants before the unfortunate incident at Tarnak Farm.

[Prof]

Prof, what I am looking for is a more generalized understanding. Driving drunk is illegal. Flying drunk is inexcusable. Note that his own crew turned him in. We watch out for, and attempt to take care of, each other.

If I encountered a drunken co-worker, I'd tell him "Call in sick NOW, or I'll make a few calls myself."

My more generalized point is that the expectations of the industry, and to a lesser extent, the flying public, are unrealistic. If you board a red-eye flight, look forward and think "Those guys are on the late shift - they are used to it and will be all right." then your perception is incorrect. There is an excellent chance that they were up at 6:00 A.M. like everyone else, and called at 8:00 P.M. to cover the trip. Around 3:00 A.M., both will be fighting a brutalizing fatigue, turning the temp to 40 degrees f, and swallowing gallons of coffee in a desperate attempt to stay awake.

We have been on the FAA's and the Industry's ass for years if not decades over fatigue, and they sweep it under the rug. In the same way, they pretend emotional difficulties do not exist.

I am not suggesting a pilot fly on morphine, but I had a friend who had such severe chronic back pain, he was usually ashen; beads of sweat would pop on his brow. Technically he was legal to fly, because he was "clean." Consider - is his pain less debilitating or distracting to his flying prowess than a Tylenol 3?

There is no federal regulation that prohibits a doctor from working while using Prozac or some other anti-depressant. Yet if a pilot is depressed, he loses his job. Once you lose your medical, to get it back is almost impossible, and when it does happen, it takes years.

Yes, I am venting. I've seen too many co-workers suffering from mental and physical issues that can be treated, and such a treatment is compatible with the cockpit, IMO.

Chogy:

Vent away with my passengerial blessing. There is never, ever, ever any excuse for a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" work rule.

Prof

[Chogy]

Colonel,

I find this to be eye openning. Majors Harry Schmidt and William Umbach admitted under oath that they were issued stimulants before the unfortunate incident at Tarnak Farm.

In the military, we were in fact issued dexedrine, an amphetamine, at least when I was active up to GW1. No one I know ever had an adverse reaction to the dexedrine, only a sharpening of the senses and an alertness.

The best I could describe it would be 3 cups of strong coffee in a caffeine-naeve person, minus the jitters and the sour stomach. They become a problem when abused for long periods of time, and the flight surgeons take particular care not to let that happen.

When crossing the Atlantic, or flying 6 - 8 hour combat missions in a single seat fighter, fatigue can be fatal. They are only supposed to be used when fatigue becomes overpowering, not as a performance boost.