I (a person with a mildly fear of flying) am all in favor for alcohol limits in pilots. Nevertheless, the article talks about "drunk" pilots, but someone that does not drink since 11 hours is in violation of the 12-hours rule, but I cannot think it as "drunk."
Moreover, strict-zero level sounds a bit too strong to me. What if you eat some over-ripe fruit that produced a bit of alcohol? Or maybe some alcohol based mouth-wash that you inadvertently swallowed a bit? I guess there are many cases where you get in touch with alcohol without even knowing and the amount is such that no effect on behavior are discernible.
In India, which boasts the world's strictest rules, pilots aren't allowed to drink within 12 hours of a flight and must have absolutely zero alcohol in their system. "0.001% is also a violation," said Lalit Gupta, a senior official at India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
"0.001%" - There is an official who has lost touch with reality. The process of digestion produces small amounts of alcohol which end up in the blood stream and can be detected. Though a lot of jurisdictions have "zero" BAC limits. Digestion and false positives makes 0.001% almost impossible to achieve - even among non-drinkers.
This is NOT offered as a defense of the SpiceJet pilots! :-)
Moreover, strict-zero level sounds a bit too strong to me. What if you eat some over-ripe fruit that produced a bit of alcohol? Or maybe some alcohol based mouth-wash that you inadvertently swallowed a bit? I guess there are many cases where you get in touch with alcohol without even knowing and the amount is such that no effect on behavior are discernible.