Pilot Charged by Calgary Police

[Lakelad]

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'Ashamed' Sunwing pilot pleads guilty to impaired charge

 

Maid found an empty 26-ounce bottle of vodka in Miroslav Gronych's hotel room

 

Tue Mar 21, 2017 - CBC News
By Meghan Grant

 

After emptying a 26-ounce bottle of vodka in his hotel room, Sunwing pilot Miroslav Gronych was so drunk when he stumbled onto the airplane he was supposed to fly from Calgary to Regina that his wing pin was on upside down and he appeared to pass out in the captain's chair.

 

Gronych, 37, a foreign national from Slovakia in Canada on a work visa, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to having care and control of an aircraft with a blood alcohol level over .08. He was arrested and charged on Dec. 31, 2016.

 

His lawyer said Gronych is addicted to alcohol and had already begun treatment in Saskatoon, where he had been living.

Gronych showed up at court on Tuesday in a navy suit and red tie. He sat in the prisoner's box and offered a tearful apology.

 

"I feel very ashamed," said Gronych. "I feel a lot of remorse."

 

The married father of two young children said he hasn't had a drink since the day of his arrest.

 

'A crime of dramatic proportion'

 

That morning, Gronych flew into the Calgary airport at 12:48 a.m. He was scheduled to report back at 6 a.m. for a 7 a.m. flight scheduled to make stops in Regina and Winnipeg before continuing to Cancun, Mexico, with 99 passengers and six flight crew on board.

 

"This was a crime of dramatic proportion," said prosecutor Rose Greenwood. "The last thing the public should have to do is question the sobriety of the pilots."

 

The details of Gronych's crime come from an agreed statement of facts read in court on Tuesday.

 

About an hour after he was supposed to report in, Gronych's second-in-command — the first officer — called Sunwing's Operations Control Centre (OCC).

 

The OCC tracked down the missing pilot, who told them he'd gotten lost after going through security and couldn't find the gate.

 

Gronych told to get off plane

 

Gronych staggered onto the airplane about 7:05 a.m. Airport and airline employees he'd passed along the way had already tracked down the first officer to voice their concerns after noting the pilot was slurring his words and couldn't walk in a straight line.

 

On the plane, Gronych took about 30 seconds to hang up his jacket.

 

The first officer took Gronych to the bridge and told him he seemed impaired and had to get off the plane.

 

"He seemed very nonchalant and said 'OK, if that's what you feel,'" said the first officer.

 

Glassy eyes, slurred speech

 

While Gronych's second-in-command was contacting the OCC with an update, the drunk pilot returned to the cockpit and appeared to pass out with his face against the window.

 

When he woke up, co-workers told him to leave on his own or be forcibly removed by police.

 

Gronych walked off the airplane, and gate agents held him at the end of the bridge until police arrived.

 

Passengers were told the pilot had suddenly fallen ill, but many had seen him stumble in and believed he was drunk.

 

Police noted Gronych had slurred speech, a tired look and glassy and pink eyes. He smelled of alcohol, and his pilot wing pin was fastened upside down.

 

Prosecutor wants pilot jailed

 

As police escorted Gronych through the airport, they noticed he wasn't able to walk in a straight line, and he staggered when standing.

 

A replacement captain was found, and the plane left at 8:30 a.m.

 

In his Delta Airport Hotel room, a maid found an empty 26-ounce bottle of vodka.

 

Gronych's intention was to book off the flight as he was feeling ill the night before, according to his account of the morning in question.

 

He drank some of the vodka, fell asleep and woke up to a phone call from his employer.

 

'Lacked the willpower not to drink'

 

Gronych drank the rest of the vodka and headed to the airport.

 

"There is no reason he can give as to why he decided to drink the alcohol," said Gronych's lawyer, Susan Karpa. "He lacked the willpower not to drink."

 

Crown prosecutor Rosalind Greenwood has asked provincial court Judge Anne Brown to sentence Gronych to a year in jail.

 

Gronych breached the trust of the airline, passengers and crew, she argued in her sentencing submissions.

 

Though there was "ample opportunity" for Gronych to change his mind, the pilot consumed an "incredible amount of alcohol" instead of going to bed.

 

"He had literally an awesome responsibility," said Greenwood.

 
Seeking treatment for addiction

 

The Crown wasn't able to find any Canadian cases of pilots charged and sentenced under the Criminal Code. In her research, Greenwood told the judge she was only able to find a U.S. example of pilots being intoxicated and charged. In that case, the captain was sentenced to five years in prison despite his blood alcohol being much less than Gronych's.

 

Gronych realized he had a drinking problem in 2010, said Karpa. He didn't seek help at the time, but since he was charged, Gronych has begun treatment in Canada and has committed to continuing in Slovakia.

 

"He will do everything he needs to do to conquer the addiction," said Karpa.

 

Gronych's wife says her family has been "bombarded by the media" and faced a "public shaming" that feels like he's already faced punishment for his crime.

 

Karpa has proposed a three- to six-month sentence.

 

Gronych will begin serving his sentence on Tuesday, but the judge hasn't yet decided how long that jail term will be.

 

Judge Brown will deliver her decision on April 3.

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[conehead]

Landed after midnight, then had to report in at 6:00am? Pretty short turn. How does one get enough rest?

[boestar]

1 hour ago, conehead said:

Landed after midnight, then had to report in at 6:00am? Pretty short turn. How does one get enough rest?

apparently by drinking enough to pass out.

[J.O.]

2 hours ago, conehead said:

Landed after midnight, then had to report in at 6:00am? Pretty short turn. How does one get enough rest?

Indeed, and the follow-up question to that is whether he was travelling on his own time or on a company deadhead? I hope for the company's sake it was option # 1.

[DEFCON]

It has been suggested that the individual checked in only a few hours earlier. The SW pilot group's CBA apparently contains a clause that allows the duty period to be extended to approximately 15.5 hours when a 5 hour hotel rest break is included during the duty period.

 

[blues deville]

6 hours ago, J.O. said:

Indeed, and the follow-up question to that is whether he was travelling on his own time or on a company deadhead? I hope for the company's sake it was option # 1.

I have some questions about this too. I somehow doubt a foreign pilot on winter contract with SW arrived in YYC on his own time before this flight. Was he deadheaded in and where was his official winter base? I don't think it was a hotel room at the Delta. 

[DEFCON]

Perhaps I wasn't clear enough and I don't know for certain, but I've heard the guy checked in Vancouver and flew to Calgary where he was supposed to get a five hour rest break, which would allow the duty period to be extended to 15.5 hours and give the pilot crew the time necessary to complete the scheduled mission segment in Cancun.

Unfortunately, this guy appeared to need some extra - help finding his way to a restful state?

 

 

 

[blues deville]

2 minutes ago, DEFCON said:

Perhaps I wasn't clear enough and I don't know for certain, but I've heard the guy checked in Vancouver and flew to Calgary where he was supposed to get a five hour rest break, which would allow the duty period to be extended to 15.5 hours and give the pilot crew the time necessary to complete the scheduled mission segment in Cancun.

Unfortunately, this guy appeared to need some extra - help finding his way to a restful state?

 

 

 

Thanks Defcon.

Five hour pre-rest to extend to 15.5 hr. to complete a 3 sector duty day? Who comes up with this stuff? Is that still with a 2 crew operation? Airplanes get old but they don't get tired.

Glad to know our minister of transport has a handle on drones. Wouldn't want some airplane spotter to fall asleep on his joy stick

[DEFCON]

"Who comes up with this stuff"

You do have to wonder.

[Fido]

4 hours ago, blues deville said:

Glad to know our minister of transport has a handle

Hey.  He was an astronut so he knows everything.

[ng78]

This was a split duty day, in which flight duty time may be extended by one-half the length of the rest period to a maximum of three hours

[blues deville]

8 minutes ago, ng78 said:

This was a split duty day, in which flight duty time may be extended by one-half the length of the rest period to a maximum of three hours

The key words here are "may be extended". Not a planned roster but for unforeseen circumstances ?

[ng78]

4 minutes ago, blues deville said:

The key words here are "may be extended". Not a planned roster but for unforeseen circumstances ?

You are confusing a split duty day with an extended duty day   

[blues deville]

10 minutes ago, ng78 said:

You are confusing a split duty day with an extended duty day   

It looks like a typical Canadian charter airline rostering tool. There are many ways (some better than others) to crew these winter seasonal flights but as I said before, the airplanes don't get tired. We used to do a similar pattern with a crew change in YQR or YWG to break up the long day for two sets of better rested pilots.

[Lakelad]

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Sunwing defends 6-hour break between flights for pilot who returned to duty drunk

 

Double-flight shift legal under Transport Canada rules but pilots' group says the practice raises eyebrows

 

Thu Mar 23, 2017 - CBC News
By Robson Fletcher

 

Sunwing Airlines is defending its scheduling in a case where a pilot showed up for the second flight of his 11-hour shift so drunk that he appeared to fall asleep in the captain's chair. But a pilots' group says the scheduling practice raises concerns.

 

Miroslav Gronych pleaded guilty this week to having care and control of an aircraft with a blood alcohol level over .08 after being arrested at the Calgary airport on Dec. 31, 2016.

 

According to an agreed statement of facts presented in court, Gronych flew into the Calgary airport at 12:48 a.m and was supposed to report back at 6 a.m. for a 7 a.m. flight that was scheduled to make stops in Regina and Winnipeg before continuing on to Cancun, Mexico.

 

Gronych was scheduled to finish his shift after the plane stopped in Regina.

 

Federal aviation regulations require that pilots have the opportunity for at least eight hours of sleep prior to reporting for flight duty at the beginning of a shift.

In this case, though, Sunwing said Gronych's duty had begun the previous night and included two separate flights, so the roughly six-hour break between them fell within the rules.

 

But Greg McConnell with the Canadian Federal Pilots Association (CFPA) said "split duty" shifts like these raise concerns about pilot readiness.

"When I saw that … it raised my eyebrows immediately," he said of the duration between Gronych's scheduled flight times.

 

The CFPA represents professional pilots whose duties include aviation inspections, flight testing of pilots, certification of operators and the development of operating standards.

 

Fly, wait at hotel, then fly again

 

Sunwing declined an interview but, in an email, the company said Gronych's scheduling fell within Transport Canada guidelines.

The shift began when he reported for duty at 10:25 p.m. on Dec. 30 in Winnipeg and flew to Calgary, arriving just before 1 a.m. on Dec. 31.

 

"Sunwing then arranged a room for him at the Delta Calgary Airport Hotel where he was to wait until his next scheduled flight later that same morning," spokesperson Jacqueline Grossman said in the email.

 

But Gronych was late reporting for the 7 a.m. flight, according to the agreed statement of facts.

 

At 6:50 a.m., the flight's co-pilot called Sunwing's operations centre, who then contacted Gronych. He said he was lost in the airport and struggling to find the right gate.

 

Gronych eventually arrived at the correct gate at 7:05 a.m., court heard, after passengers had already boarded the plane.

 

Signs of impairment

 

At this point the co-pilot observed what he described as obvious signs of impairment — slurred speech, staggering and difficulty in accomplishing simple tasks like hanging up his jacket. He then took Gronych off the aircraft to tell him he wouldn't be flying the plane.

 

When the co-pilot then called Sunwing's operations centre to update them on the situation, court heard that Gronych then returned to the flight deck, sat in the pilot's chair, and appeared to fall asleep.

 

He later left the aircraft voluntarily and was arrested by police at 8:08 a.m.

 

Had Gronych completed his shift, Sunwing said he was scheduled to arrive in Regina at 9:25 a.m., where he would have ended his shift.

 

He was not scheduled to continue on to Cancun.

 

"It is important to note that Gronych was continuously on duty throughout the entire 11 hour and 15 minute period, which abides with Transport Canada's guidelines stating that a duty period cannot exceed 14 hours," Grossman said.

 

'You don't want us falling asleep'

.

 

[Kip Powick]

I think it is real simple.......he fell asleep in the cockpit, not from the lack of sleep/rest...he fell asleep because he was 'blind-drunk'.

[DEFCON]

Spending the down time during a split shift in a hotel room is a whole lot better from the pov of a pilot than being forced to hang out at the airport.

Jazz does the same thing pretty regularly; I'm told the guys that wear capes like these segments while others see them as a form of cruel & unusual punishment.

And then there's the long haul operator that uses crew augmentation, which is arguably the most physiologically demanding form of shift splitting. 

[ng78]

12 hours ago, blues deville said:

It looks like a typical Canadian charter airline rostering tool. There are many ways (some better than others) to crew these winter seasonal flights but as I said before, the airplanes don't get tired. We used to do a similar pattern with a crew change in YQR or YWG to break up the long day for two sets of better rested pilots.

Give me one of these split duty periods any day, where I do two short legs with a good rest period in between, all within one continuous duty period, than a nasty 14 or augmented 15 hour red-eye.  

[blues deville]

7 hours ago, ng78 said:

Give me one of these split duty periods any day, where I do two short legs with a good rest period in between, all within one continuous duty period, than a nasty 14 or augmented 15 hour red-eye.  

Spent over 20 years flying under these rules and others used by charter airlines. And there was a time before the augmented pilot. It wasn't always the flying that got tiring. It was the drive home!

[Moon The Loon]

3 hours ago, blues deville said:

Spent over 20 years flying under these rules and others used by charter airlines. And there was a time before the augmented pilot. It wasn't always the flying that got tiring. It was the drive home!

Air Atlantic was famous for these type of pairings. Initially, they were two legs - one out, 5 or 6 hours later, one back. Then, they figured they could do one out, three back, stretching the limit to the then 15 hours. Doing 3 of them in a row met the rules. But brutal as hell.

Crew sched did what they were told. Management worked us to the limit. We were young then. Too old today!!!!

[DEFCON]

I was very surprised to see the TC Inspectors comments. It's clear that split shifting has been a regular industry practice for decades and yet, at least in this Inspector's case, TC has only become aware of and concerned over the policy now?

  

[blues deville]

4 hours ago, DEFCON said:

I was very surprised to see the TC Inspectors comments. It's clear that split shifting has been a regular industry practice for decades and yet, at least in this Inspector's case, TC has only become aware of and concerned over the policy now?

I thought the same when I first read his comments. But I think this contract SW pilots planned duty day was not exactly clear until some of the more recent news reports. At first it sounded as though Gronych was operating all the way to CUN and not ending his shift in YQR. I think Greg would have a different comment now if asked by the media as he has done this kind of flying himself prior to joining TC.

[Lakelad]

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Drunk pilot who appeared to pass out in cockpit sentenced to 8 months

Judge also barred Miroslav Gronych from flying for 1 year after he's released from jail

Mon Apr 03, 2017 - CBC News

A pilot who pleaded guilty to being impaired while in control of a Sunwing Airlines jet has been sentenced in Calgary to eight months in jail, minus time served, and barred from flying for a year after his release.

Miroslav Gronych's sentence works out to 219 days in custody.

Provincial court Judge Anne Brown also imposed on the Slovakian national a one-year prohibition from flying an aircraft.

Gronych pleaded guilty last month to having care and control of an aircraft while he had a blood alcohol level that was three times the legal limit.

He was escorted off a Sunwing Airlines plane in Calgary on Dec. 31 that was supposed to fly to Regina and Winnipeg before continuing to Cancun, Mexico.

Crown prosecutor Rosalind Greenwood said she's satisfied with the outcome.

"I think eight months sends a pretty clear message that [the judge] agrees denunciation and deterrence are really important here," she said. "Don't fly drunk. It's pretty simple."  

The defence had asked for a three- to six-month sentence, while the Crown sought one year in jail.

'He has since lost his job.'

.

 

[Moon The Loon]

11 minutes ago, Lakelad said:

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Drunk pilot who appeared to pass out in cockpit sentenced to 8 months

Judge also barred Miroslav Gronych from flying for 1 year after he's released from jail

Mon Apr 03, 2017 - CBC News

 

'He has since lost his job.'

.

 

...and be deported after sentence is completed.

What a horrible way to end a career for someone so young.

[blues deville]

Sorry but no sympathy here. He won't be flying again anytime soon in this country. However, he will likely resurface elsewhere once the dust has settled. There will be some operator who will hire him.