Any time you take to the friendly skies, you expect your pilot will be in good shape to get you to your destination. Or at the very least, someone who is coherent.
In the case of one flight heading to Cancun, Mexico from Calgary, Canada, that flight got off to a delayed start after the pilot scheduled to take the plane south was found passed out in the cockpit and arrested by police.
The pilot, Miroslav Gronych, was charged with two alcohol-related offenses, according to a New York Times report. He was charged with having care and control of an aircraft while impaired, and having care and control of an aircraft while testing for a BAC over .08.
“This is a new one, and obviously this had a very significant potential to cause great harm had the pilot actually been allowed to fly this plane,” Staff Sgt. Paul Stacey of the Calgary Police Service said, according to the report. “There’s just so many checks and balances, it just doesn’t surprise me that he got caught before this plane was able to leave the gate.”
Gronych apparently showed up to the airport in an intoxicated state, yet was still able to get himself through multiple checkpoints to board his plane. Fortunately, for the air travelers, Gronych passed out in the cockpit before the plane was scheduled for departure. After his removal from the plane, a new crew boarded on the plane and the flight took of without any further issues.