Fearfully Plastered Freight Dawg Jailed

The 39 year old captain of a Ukrainian AN 22 freighter crew arrested on 08 January for drunkenness was sentenced to 5 months in jail today (23 Feb 07). Ten Ukrainian-crewmembers of a 16 man AN-22 crew had been apprehended at Flesland airport, Bergen, Norway. Security stopped them when they walked through the security post, some evidently very drunk. That group included the pilots and the navigator. Four individuals, out of the group of 16 heading out to board the huge turboprop at around 06:00, initially tested positive for excessive alcohol consumption and were arrested. Another crew was flown in from Ukraine to fly the aircraft out of Norway. It is unclear which company was chartering the aircraft, which had been engaged to transport industrial equipment.

Three crew members: captain, radio operator and an engineer were held on remand for 4 weeks according to newspapers BT.NO & VG.NO. Captain reportedly blood-tested @ 1.1 grams alcohol per 1,000 grams of blood. FE had 1.4! That and the captains 1.1 was measured 3.5hrs after they were stopped at the security checkpoint. A third crewmember was reportedly too drunk to manage the breathalyzer test.

The aircraft is a "one of a kind" super-sized freighter operated by Antonov Airlines (Antonov Design Bureau) and it was headed to Azerbaijan.. Four hours after his check-in time, the captain had still been above a level of 5 times over the legal limit. Other crewmembers were even more drunk. The Captain pleaded guilty. The celebratory occasion was orthodox Christmas. He was quoted as admitting to stupid and reckless behavior.