Gabriel Lyle Schroeder suspected drunk Delta Airlines pilot arrested prior to fully boarded plane was scheduled for take off at at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
So much for flying etiquette. For the crew. A Delta Airlines pilot has been arrested after authorities believed the airman of being drunk moment before he’d been scheduled to commandeer a fully boarded plane according to reports.
Gabriel Lyle Schroeder, 37, was apprehended just after 11 a.m. Tuesday after police at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport found him reeking of alcohol and with a bottle of booze on him (why decline?).
Schroeder, of Rosemount, Minnesota, left a pre-boarding TSA screening line for crew members when he noticed (oops!) that additional screening was being conducted, airport spokesman Patrick Hogan told CNN.
‘The individual left the line, which drew suspicion,’ Hogan said.
The pilot ultimately returned to the line — but (too late …) officers had already reported him to the Minneapolis Airport Police, who conducted two sobriety checks, ABC 5 reported. One found that he was under the influence of alcohol, and results from the other are pending.
Officers also found that the pilot was in possession of a ‘bottle’ of alcohol, a Delta spokesman said, while declining to specify which type.
But it gets grimmer. Another round?
Other employees around Schroeder suspected that he was intoxicated because they could smell the booze on his breath, according to the report.
No formal charges were immediately filed against Schroeder and any formal complaint is pending the results of toxicology tests, which could take as long as a week, Hogan told CNN.
Schroeder was booked and released later Tuesday.
Delta spokeswoman Kate Modolo confirmed that the airline is working with local authorities.
‘Delta’s alcohol policy is among the strictest in the industry and we have no tolerance for violation,’ a released (hapless…) statement said. ‘Delta is cooperating with local authorities in their investigation.’
The airline declined to detail the pilot’s employment record or note any previous disciplinary issues. It’s not clear what treatment is afforded to those employees struggling with alcoholism and other addiction issues.
At the time of Schroeder’s arrest, all passengers had boarded San Diego-bound Flight 1726 but the plane had not yet left the gate.
The passengers needed to disembark after Schroeder’s arrest and were slightly delayed, Hogan said.
‘There’s always a chance the plane might have taken off,’ he said. ‘There’s a possibility of that.’
