A Southwest Airlines pilot was arrested shortly before takeoff Wednesday in Georgia after he allegedly showed up to work drunk, police say.
David Allsop (52), a resident of New Hampshire, was arrested in Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport around 7 a.m. Wednesday, according to the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office. He was reported for driving under the influence of alcohol.
Allsop was arrested just before Southwest Flight 3772, bound for Chicago, was scheduled to leave Georgia. It took off shortly before 11 a.m., almost four hours after it was supposed to take off.
Southwest told Fox News Digital that it is investigating the incident and that Allsop, whose LinkedIn profile says he is a pilot, has been “removed from duty.”
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A Southwest Airlines pilot was arrested after he allegedly showed up to work drunk. (iStock | Chatham County Sheriff’s Office)
“We are aware of the situation involving an employee on Flight 3772 this morning from Savannah,” the airline said. “The employee has been removed from duty.”
Southwest also noted that passengers from that flight were placed on other flights while Flight 3772 remained grounded.
“Customers have been accommodated on other flights and we apologize for the disruption to their travel plans,” a spokesman said. “There is nothing more important to Southwest than the safety of our employees and customers.”
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David Allsop was arrested Wednesday morning, Georgia authorities say. (Chatham County Sheriff’s Office)
It is rare, but not unheard of, for a pilot to be arrested or detained for drinking excessively before a flight. Last May, Japan Airlines grounded flight from Dallas to Tokyo after it was discovered that the pilot drank excessively the night before.
Although the pilot did not violate internal guidelines against drinking within 12 hours of takeoff, Japan Airlines canceled the flight to “assess the captain’s physical and mental condition.”
A Southwest Airlines passenger plane landed at Chicago Midway International Airport. (Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images)
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Authorities are actively investigating the incident.
Fox News Digital’s Christina Coulter, David Lewkowict and Chip Bell contributed to this report.
