A Southwest pilot was removed from the cockpit by police after a TSA agent noticed he smelled of alcohol
Kevin Carter/Getty Images
- A Southwest Airlines pilot was charged with driving under the influence as he prepared to fly.
- David Paul Allsop was going through pre-flight checks when police entered the cockpit.
- A TSA agent contacted police after screening him, saying he smelled of alcohol and seemed intoxicated.
A Southwest Airlines pilot was arrested shortly before takeoff on Wednesday.
David Paul Allsop, 52, was charged with driving under the influence after the incident in Savannah, Georgia, according to Chatham County Sherriff's Office records.
He was due to fly from Savannah to Chicago Midway Airport before airport police boarded the plane.
A Transportation Security Administration officer contacted law enforcement after "encountering an individual in the crew screening lane who smelled of alcohol and appeared intoxicated," an agency spokesperson told Business Insider.
"TSA always reminds passengers that if you see something, say something, and that is exactly what our Transportation Security Officer at Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport did when they saw something out of the norm," it said.
Allsop was performing pre-flight checks in the cockpit when the police asked him to step out for questioning, per an incident report seen by CNN and the New York Times.
CNN reported that the responding officer said there was a "noticeable odor emanating" from Allsop, who he described as having "bloodshot, watery eyes and a flushed complexion."
He told police he drank a "few light beers" the night before, the Times reported.
Allsop failed a field sobriety test and declined to take a blood test, the arrest report said, per CNN.
Data from Flightradar24 shows the Boeing 737 landed in Chicago nearly five hours later than scheduled.
In a statement shared with the outlets, Southwest said the "employee involved in the situation on Flight 3772 Wednesday morning from Savannah has been removed from duty."
"Customers were accommodated on other flights and we apologize for the disruption to their travel plans," it added.
Allsop was released after posting a $3,500 bond, the sheriff's office records show.
Chatham County Sherriff's Office, the TSA, and Southwest Airlines did not immediately respond to requests for comment sent by Business Insider outside US working hours.
This isn't the first time an airline pilot has been arrested after being suspected of being under the influence.
Last March, a Delta Air Lines captain pleaded guilty to reporting for duty as a pilot while being impaired through drink or drugs, after Airport security officers found two bottles of Jägermeister in his luggage.
And in 2023, a United Airlines pilot was given a six-month suspended prison sentence after showing up to work more than six times over the legal alcohol limit for pilots.