Pilot and three cabin crew test positive for alcohol at Schiphol

AMSTERDAM — Four airline crew members tested positive for alcohol during a major check at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. Dutch military police and regular police tested 707 cockpit and cabin crew members over a three-hour period.

One pilot had alcohol in his blood but remained below the legal threshold of 0.2 per mille. However, because aviation personnel are not allowed to consume alcohol within 10 hours before a flight and the operational limit is effectively zero, the pilot was temporarily banned from flying for one hour.

Three cabin crew members were above the legal limit. One steward who registered 0.55 per mille accepted an €850 fine, while a stewardess who measured 0.58 per mille accepted a €1,000 fine. A third steward, at 0.28 per mille, requested a counter-test and no final decision has yet been made in that case.

Authorities did not disclose which airlines employed the crew members.