SAS pilot arrested with cocaine in bloodstream after Copenhagen-Nice flight
A pilot for the Scandinavian airline SAS was arrested at Nice airport following a routine screening that revealed the presence of cocaine in his system.
SAS pilot arrested with cocaine in bloodstream after Copenhagen-Nice flight
On Wednesday, at Nice-Côte d'Azur airport, French authorities arrested a captain working for SAS. The man had just landed after piloting an aircraft from Copenhagen. A screening test carried out on the entire crew revealed the presence of cocaine in his system.
This information was reported by the regional newspaper Nice Matin, relayed by Danish broadcaster TV 2. The test had been carried out at 15:00, shortly after the aircraft's arrival on French soil.
The following day, the defendant was tried by a French court. The court sentenced him to ten months' imprisonment. Furthermore, he is banned from entering French airspace for twelve months.
The return flight, which was to take the aircraft to Stockholm, could not be completed. The airline had to cancel this service.
Passengers on board appeared to notice no anomalies during the journey. The departure had been delayed by around twenty minutes, but the landing was only three minutes behind schedule.
When contacted by Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, SAS spokesperson Alexandra Lindgren Kaoukji refused to comment on the details of the case, describing it simply as an "internal matter". She nevertheless reiterated that the safety of customers and employees is the company's primary concern, which applies stringent security measures and a zero-tolerance policy on drugs, in accordance with international standards for commercial aviation.
Source: TV 2 Nyheder