British Airways pilot hauled off plane by armed police ‘was four times over the drink-fly limit’

A BRITISH Airways pilot has been charged after being hauled off a plane, allegedly four times over the drink-fly limit.

Julian Monaghan, 49, was arrested in January and led from the Boeing 777 in handcuffs after fellow crew members reportedly noticed he stank of booze.

Airline colleagues called 999 after the long-serving first officer stepped into the cockpit to make the 12-hour flight from Gatwick to Mauritius.

A passenger who witnessed the drama on the BA flight said police rushed onto the plane, heading "straight for the cockpit".

They told : "The first officer was cuffed and led away. A number of passengers were open-mouthed.

"It's terrifying to think what might've happened."

The first officer was one of three pilots due to take control of a Gatwick Airport's North Terminal to Mauritius flight, with the flight reportedly delayed for several hours on January 18.

Yesterday, Sussex Police confirmed he had been charged with having 86mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood in his system.

The limit for pilots is 20mg.

In a statement, they said: "The Crown Prosecution Service has authorised a charge of being over the alcohol limit on board an aircraft against a former pilot.

"Julian Monaghan, 49, a resident of South Africa, was arrested at Gatwick Airport’s North Terminal at about 8.45pm on Thursday January 18 on suspicion of performing an aviation function when the level of alcohol was over the prescribed limit."

The pilot reportedly joined the airline in 2001.

Monaghan, who splits his time between South Africa and Harmondsworth, West London, will appear before JPs in Crawley on June 6.

British Airways said it was assisting police and that Monaghan no longer works for them.

A spokesperson added: "The safety and security of our customers and crew is always our top priority."

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