The men were remanded in custody when they first appeared at Paisley Sheriff Court, also charged under section 93 of the same Act.
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Last month, Canadian pilots Jean-Francois Perreault, 39, and Imran Zafar Syed, 37, were arrested at Glasgow Airport for allegedly being under the influence of alcohol as they were about to fly a transatlantic flight. Licona reportedly worked in Military Intelligence for the National Guard and has been a flight instructor, while Grebenc’s Linked In page notes Air Force and Air Force Reserve experience.
And, ironically, Grebenc boasts on his LinkedIn of “3200+ hours of accident and Incident-free flying in high-performance fixed-wing aircraft”. He now lives in Columbus, Mississippi.
They appeared in private at Paisley Sheriff Court, where they were charged under section 93 of the Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003, which covers alcohol limits in aviation.
The section relates to carrying out pilot function or activity while exceeding the prescribed limit of alcohol.
United said Saturday’s flight from Glasgow to the USA city of Newark, New Jersey, was delayed for 10 hours while the airline sought replacement pilots.
“The two pilots have been removed from service and their flying duties”, United spokeswoman Erin Benson added in a statement to the news agency. “We are cooperating with the authorities and will conduct our own investigation as well”.
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A spokesman said the safety of the company’s customers and crew is its “highest priority”. The pilots were granted bail and the case has been continued.
