New Post has been published on The Rakyat Post
New Post has been published on http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2015/01/01/airasia-indonesia-conducting-advance-tests-grounded-pilot/
AirAsia Indonesia conducting advance tests on grounded pilot
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 1, 2015:
AirAsia Indonesia is currently fully cooperating with the Indonesian authorities who are performing further tests to confirm the results of a pilot whose urine test results found traces of morphine.
AirAsia Indonesia chief executive officer Sunu Widyatmoko clarified that while the airline understands that the initial test had come back positive for morphine, these tests often resulted in false positives, leading advanced tests to be conducted.
Sunu told The Rakyat Post through email that the last dosage of medication the pilot had consumed was at 2pm on Dec 31 after the latter was diagnosed and hospitalised for typhoid from Dec 26 to 29.
“He was on antibiotics, cough medicine and vitamins.
“He had provided this information, along with evidence of medicines, to the authorities prior to the test.
“As per industry standard, all of our pilots are required to perform biannual medical tests to qualify them to hold a licence to operate scheduled commercial flights.”
Sunu said the pilot has been with AirAsia since July 2005 and had a perfect record.
“In addition, AirAsia has continuously cooperated with the National Narcotics Agency to perform random substance abuse tests for our pilots, cabin crew and employees at least twice a year.”
The pilot was reportedly grounded after a urine test conducted on him indicated traces of morphine.
Indonesian news portal Tempo had reported today that the pilot was flying QZ7510 from Soekarno Hatta Airport in Jakarta to Ngurah Rai Airport in Bali after which a check was conducted when the flight landed today.
The portal quoted Indonesian Transportation Ministry spokesman Hadi Mustofa Djuraid explaining that the findings on the pilot were discovered following checks conducted by the airline’s health staff.