Incident Forces Japan Airlines to Discipline Two Senior Leaders

Japan Airlines dished out a 30 percent pay cut to two top executives after pilots showed up drunk to a flight in December. The incident triggered several other disciplinary actions and increased company oversight.

Flight JL774 was expected to depart from Melbourne Airport (MEL) at 7:20 am on December 1. Its pilots, a 59-year-old with nearly 16,000 flight hours and a 56-year-old with 13,300 flight hours, conducted self-administered breath tests before leaving the hotel. After testing above company limits, one pilot chose to request a shift delay for “illness” while the other continued to the airport.

The flight remained on the ground at MEL until 10:31 am when it eventually departed for Tokyo’s Narita International Airport (NRT). The pilots were able to make up some time in the air but still landed 2 hours and 42 minutes behind schedule.

Two days later, Japan Airlines investigators were able to confirm that both pilots violated company policy. They noted that the pair split two glasses of sparkling wine and two full bottles of wine the day before the flight.

Japan Airlines requires pilots to have a remaining alcohol concentration equal to that of no more than four drinks 12 hours before their shift. Pilots are immediately suspended if their test reads above 0.00 milligrams per liter.

“We recognize the severity of this situation, especially considering our previous warning,” a carrier representative stated. “We are conducting comprehensive interviews with the involved crew members to prevent future occurrences.”

The incident caused Japan Airlines to enforce a two-month, 30 percent salary chop on two of its top executives: President Mitsuko Tottori and Chairperson Yuji Akasaka. Tottori also revealed that Akasaka would be taken out of his role as the company’s safety controller. Three more flight ops and safety management executives were disciplined.

The event brings back memories of another issue in 2018 when top executives, Akasaka again being one, were docked up to 20% of their pay. The pilot had attempted to fly from London Heathrow (LHR) to NRT while intoxicated and was later jailed.

FMI:www.jal.co.jp/jp/en