A Southwest Airlines pilot was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly reporting to work while intoxicated, multiple outlets have reported.
The pilot, identified as 52-year-old David Allsop, was taken into custody at Hilton Head International Airport in Savannah after a security official noticed he appeared intoxicated and allegedly smelled of alcohol. Allsop was scheduled to operate Flight 3772 to Chicago but was detained before takeoff.
“We’re aware of a situation involving an employee on Flight 3772 Wednesday morning from Savannah,” Southwest Airlines said in a statement to CNN, confirming that Allsop has been “removed from duty.”
According to booking documents obtained by ABC News, Allsop was performing pre-flight checks when he was removed from the cockpit. He was given a sobriety test on the jet bridge, which he failed.
Allsop, a captain based at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport in Maryland, had been with Southwest Airlines for 18 years.
