(The Hill) — A court in France sentenced a United Airlines pilot to a six-month suspended prison term and one-year suspended license for showing up to work intoxicated Tuesday, local media outlets reported.
The pilot, reportedly a 63-year-old American, referred to only as “Henry W.” in French media, showed up to work at Paris’s Charles de Gaulle Airport with a blood alcohol content three times the legal limit for pilots in Europe. According to an emailed statement by United sent to The Hill, the flight was headed to Washington Dulles International Airport, despite other reports it was going to Dallas.
“The safety of our customers and crew is always our top priority,” the United statement said. “We hold all our employees to the highest standards and have a strict no-tolerance policy for alcohol. This employee was immediately removed from service and we are fully cooperating with local authorities.”
According to a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, by the National Gendarmerie, a French national law enforcement organization, the pilot’s license is suspended for a year. The incident reportedly occurred at 3 p.m. Sunday.
