CL604 Charter Copilot Allegedly Tries To Fly Drunk

A charter copilot accused of attempting to fly while intoxicated late last week has pled not guilty to the charges in a Michigan District Court. On the morning of August 25, Sean Michael Fitzgerald, a pilot with Long Island-based Talon Air, was removed from the cockpit of a Bombardier Challenger 604 during a pre-flight check at Cherry Capital Airport in Traverse City, Mich., after the flight’s captain determined there was something wrong and notified his dispatchers. According to news reports, Fitzgerald, a Florida resident, was arrested after his field-administered sobriety test showed a blood alcohol content of .30—more than seven times the FAA's legal limit of 0.04 percent blood alcohol concentration for operating an aircraft.

Under Michigan law, pilots are prohibited from flying or acting as crew if their blood alcohol content is 0.02 percent or more. Both the federal and state laws also prohibit flying within eight hours of consuming alcohol. “We are very proud of Captain Manny Ramirez's immediate action in detecting the copilot's condition and removing him from his position,” the company said in a statement. “This is yet another example of Talon Air's safety procedures working effectively on behalf of our clients and for airport safety. The individual in question has been immediately terminated.”

Fitzgerald was released on $5,000 bond, with a preliminary hearing scheduled for September 8. According to an FAA spokesperson, the agency is also investigating the situation.