• 🇳🇿 🇲🇲 🇯🇵 🇨🇳 🇦🇺 🇦🇶 🇮🇳
    Australian & Asian
    Drug Discussion

    Welcome Guest!
    Posting Rules Bluelight Rules
  • AADD Moderators: Tronica

Drug and Alcohol Testing for Aviation Industry

K

kooky77

Bluelighter
Joined
Mar 11, 2001
Messages
113
Location
Australia
Media Release
John Anderson Deputy Prime Minister
Leader of The Nationals
Minister for Transport and Regional Services

18 March 2004
A36/2004
Drug and Alcohol Testing for Aviation Industry A review of the safety benefits of introducing a drug and alcohol testing programme for the Australian aviation industry was announced today by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Transport and Regional Services, John Anderson.

Mr Anderson said the review, to be conducted by the Department of Transport and Regional Services and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), was recommended in an Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) report released today relating to the investigation into a fatal accident on Hamilton Island in September 2002.

"I have asked CASA and the Department to jointly develop terms of reference for a comprehensive examination of the benefits of such a programme for Australia," Mr Anderson said.

"I expect these terms of reference to be completed, for my consideration, by 16 April 2004.

"I regret the tragic loss of life which resulted from this accident and, while the ATSB was not able to conclusively establish the reasons for it, clearly there is a case for carefully considering the best way to address the impacts of alcohol and drug use on aviation safety.

"The Government's vision is for Australia to have a world class aviation safety regulatory environment, which is why we are taking up the ATSB's recommendation relating to drug and alcohol testing."

Mr Anderson said that current Australian aviation safety regulations prohibited flight crew from being under the influence of drugs and alcohol and he appreciated that the introduction of a testing regime for all safety sensitive personnel in the aviation industry would represent significant change.

Media contact
Paul Chamberlin 02 62777680 / 0419 233989
http://www.casa.gov.au/hotopics/other/04-03-18and.htm
 
I guess no-one other than perhaps regular flyers would give much thought to drink and/or drugs before flying a plane. I'm not speaking of airline pilots so much, more the recreational or weekend flyers.

If you've got your license you can hire a small plane for the weekend and off you go. There's no RBT, and seldom if at all are there any such checks, particularly at smaller airports. So, once up in the air, what's to stop someone having a big joint or a monster line of coke, or as my mate was unfortunate enough to discover, even a big hit of smack.

My mate had teamed up with a retired chief from a larger biker fraternity. They travelled almost every weekend for a while there; shooting out west in the morning, into cairns that night, back down the coast the next day. My mate loved the adventure. They'd often play up a bit before heading off, and as the pilot was an experienced capable guy, my mate said he always felt safe flying with him. But the day in mention saw the pilot score some heroin. After take off, he put the plane on autopilot before hitting himself up. Then to the utter horror of my mate, he promptly nodded off.

My mate said he'd learned enough over the months to know how to interpret instruments and to know that everything was OK for the time being, but he was freaked at the thought of having to land - which he'd never done before.

All efforts to wake the pilot failed; he said he looked seriously at the radio for awhile. But just when they were getting close to home, his friend snorted loudly and woke. Needless to say they landed safely. But I don't think my mate did too much flying with the ol bloke after that :\



Another sad but more lighthearted tale has to do with another friend who was once in the process of getting his helicopter license. His big problem was that he was also spending lots of his flytime money on coke. He'd always said his teacher was a hard case, dropping little clues about drugs that most of the class missed altogether.

My mate said he'd acted very straight in class, but his teacher detected something. So when his teacher asked

Why does a helicopter pilot NEVER snort cocaine before flying?.
My mate popped up and said, cause you'll end up spending all your money and never be able to afford flying lessons.

Err..No! came the reply, It's because cocaine reduces the sense of smell and it's vitally important any fuel odours are noticed as quickly as possible.

He then said to my mate that once the license was attained, the price of cocaine wouldn't be likely to pose much of a worry. Pity my mate didn't wait then, as he used up $60,000 of his inheritance on the alternative form of flying, one for which there was no course of instruction to prepare for him the inevitable crash landing.

There is no place for drug use in piloting or when working in air travel, but like all introduced compulsory testing, I wonder that if the long run it's the best way to achieve it.

More importantly - as was seen in the wording of the Qantas policy developed last year - will this allow or somehow permit employees and private flyers to "party today, fly tomorrow"? And if so, like the debate currently heating with roadside drug testing procedures, what will the cutoffs be, and who will decide them?
 
Airline and ground staff face drug, alcohol tests
By Stephen Moynihan
May 3, 2006

FOR the first time thousands of aviation employees including pilots, flight attendants and baggage handlers will be forced to undergo drug and alcohol testing.

All employees who work on or in close proximity to aircraft will be tested under new Federal Government regulations.

Under the plan, to be phased in over the next 18 months, security staff, air traffic controllers and ground refuellers will also be tested.

Federal Transport Minister Warren Truss announced the proposal yesterday following a recommendation by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority.

The Department of Transport and CASA estimate that 8 per cent of pilots are alcohol dependent, with similar figures for flight attendants and maintenance workers.

The Australian and International Pilots Association, which represents Qantas pilots — has accepted the proposal but is concerned guidelines for the testing have not been established and the tests will play down other factors in aviation safety.

"The key issues that should not be lost sight of include fatigue and the level of training and experience of flight crew," union vice-president Jeff Lunt said.

Qantas, the country's largest employer of commercial airline pilots and flight attendants, has welcomed the move, saying it will complement an existing drug and alcohol program introduced in 2003.

Drug and alcohol testing has already been implemented for workers in the road transport, mining and forestry industries and a similar "broad approach" to testing will be implemented in the aviation sector.

The secretary of the Flight Attendants Association of Australia, international division, Michael Mijatov, said the new regulations would have to ensure that all aviation employees were treated fairly and reasonably.

Lawrie Cox, manager of industrial relations for the Australian and International Pilots Association, said it was a "knee-jerk" reaction to the death of a pilot flying a light plane at Hamilton Island in 2002 who tested positive to traces of cannabis and alcohol following an autopsy.

"We're not opposed to drug testing … but as a profession as a whole, pilots undergo far more rigorous medical testing than other occupations," Mr Cox said.
Click to expand...

From The Age
 
I used to do E's and speed a lot, usually not directly before flying, but in the days leading up to it. They used to only do the occasional pre flight alcohol test. It only happened to me once but was enough to convince me to stay off the booze while flying. Due to drug tests I have resorted to just doing mushrooms occasionally, but only when i am accompanied by an experienced Captain, i would never take drugs pre-flight if i was the 1st pilot.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top