Marijuana, alcohol and heroin - Some sad stories - Curt Lewis

Report: Pilot who crashed WWII aircraft had pot in system A recently released report has found that the Durango pilot who crashed a World War II aircraft on July 4, 2014 had marijuana levels above the legal limit in his blood. The Durango Herald reports that according to the report by the National Transportation Safety Board, John Earley's blood tested positive for 6.3 nanograms of THC, above Colorado's legal driving limit of 5 nanograms. Both Earley and his passenger Michael Schlarb were killed when the vintage plane crashed at the Durango-La Plata County Airport. Schlarb's blood tests were negative for any alcohol or drugs. Schlarb's wife, Mona Schlarb, says Michael was teaching Earley how to pilot the P-51 Mustang at the time of the crash. http://www.krdo.com/news/Report-Pilot-who-crashed-WWII-aircraft-had-pot-in-system/40970700 **************** Date: 04-JUL-2014 Time: 09:30 LT Type: North American P-51D Mustang Owner/operator: Bridgewood Holdings LLC Registration: N1451D C/n / msn: 44-74446A Fatalities: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 Other fatalities: 0 Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: Near the Durango-La Plata County airport (KDRO), Durango, CO -    United States of America Phase: Take off Nature: Training Departure airport: Durango-La Plata County (KDRO) Destination airport: Narrative: The plane crashed shortly after takeoff under unknown circumstances. Both occupants died in the crash. Witnesses saw the aircraft takeoff and enter a hard left bank to approximately 90 degrees. The nose pitched up slightly and it continued to turn past 90 degrees to an inverted position when the nose pitched down to approximately a 45 degree angle. The witnesses stated they lost sight as it went behind a hangar and did not witness the impact.

Airplane alcohol clampdown could see airports forced to sell booze in sealed plastic bags (UK) Aviation Minister Lord Ahmad is considering a series of measures in a bid to reduce the number of drink-fuelled air-rage incidents Airport bar staff will be trained to deal with disruptive behaviour Airports could be forced to sell alcohol in sealed bags in a bid to stop drink-fuelled air-rage incidents. The new Aviation Minister Lord Ahmad wants a clampdown after an airline handed a passenger a £12,000 bill and a lifetime ban when his "abusive and aggressive" behaviour led to a plane being diverted. Joshua Strickland, 21, of Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, "illicitly" drank alcohol he had brought on to the aircraft on July 13 and threatened a family on board. The flight from Leeds Bradford to Larnaca, Cyprus, with budget carrier Jet2.com, had to be diverted to Manchester after he made "physical threats" towards a crew member and also began to "punch the seats". Strickland appeared at Manchester magistrates court on Thursday where he pleaded guilty to being drunk on an aircraft. At least 442 people were held on suspicion of being drunk on a plane or at an airport in the past two years. Lord Ahmad said: "If you're a young family travelling on a plane you want to go from point A to B, you don't want to be disrupted. "I don't think we want to kill merriment altogether, but I think it's important that passengers who board planes are also responsible and have a responsibility to other passengers, and that certainly should be the factor which we bear in mind. "In terms of specific regulations of timings of outlets (which sell alcohol) and how they operate, clearly I want to have a look at that." Lord Ahmad, who was appointed aviation minister by Theresa May when she became Prime Minister earlier this month, also highlighted the value of screening travellers before they board planes. "I think that it's important for the safety and security of all passengers that we ensure that regime is actually fit for purpose," he said. A code of practice on disruptive passengers was published earlier this week following collaboration between airlines, airports, the police and retailers. It includes airport shops advising passengers not to drink alcohol they have purchased before or during their flight, and training staff in bars and restaurants to limit or stop the sale of alcohol if they are concerned about disruptive behaviour. A new code of practice has been drawn up Trade bodies representing UK airlines and airports said incidents of disruption are "a very rare occurrence", but warned they can lead to "serious consequences". Tim Alderslade, chief executive of the British Air Transport Association, and Ed Anderson, chairman of the Airport Operators Association, said in a joint statement: "These incidents can be costly and cause delays. "With air travel proving more popular than ever, and passenger numbers expected to rise across the whole of the UK in the coming years, now is the time to tackle this problem collectively." A Department for Transport spokeswoman said: "Airport security is always under review, however there are no plans to specifically address the issue of alcohol at airports."

Pakistan's National Airlines Staff Arrested For Plan To Smuggle Heroin Six kilogrammes of heroin worth over Rs. 60 million were seized from the toilet of the aircraft LAHORE: Pakistani authorities today arrested 13 employees of its national carrier Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) here for allegedly trying to smuggle 6 kgs of heroin worth over 60 million rupees to Dubai. PIA flight PK-203 was ready to leave for Dubai on Saturday from the airport here when the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) staff got it vacated on information that a huge quantity of heroin had been concealed in the aircraft, officials said. After a thorough search of a couple of hours, the ANF team seized 6 kg of heroin worth over Rs. 60 million from the toilet of the aircraft, they said. Thirteen PIA employees were arrested by the ANF and a thorough probe was launched into the matter. PIA spokesman Daniyal Gilani confirmed the arrests saying some of the airline employees have been taken into custody in connection with the failed bid to smuggle heroin. After investigation, if these employees are found guilty, strict action will be taken against them, he said. During the last few years, there has been a rapid rise in the number of cases in which the PIA employees were caught red-handed while smuggling different items like drugs, cigarettes, mobile phones, illegal passports and laundered money abroad. In some cases, the PIA employees were caught at Pakistani airports and in others, they were intercepted and arrested in other countries, mostly in the European destinations.