MILAN Monday July 27 (Reuters)
- Italian police on Monday questioned a British pilot who held
148 passengers aboard his plane for 40 minutes after landing
in Milan because no one would admit to being the person who broke
the strict no-smoking rules.
Sue Harrison, a spokeswoman for
Go, the new low-cost carrier that is part of British Airways
Plc, said the incident happened on Sunday afternoon after a flight
from Stansted to Milan's Malpensa airport. Go made its first
flight in May.
She said that one passenger had
blocked the smoke detector in one of the plane's toilets and
had smoked a cigarette in violation of Go's no-smoking rules
and strict safety standards.
On arrival, captain Bryan Bliss,
a 57-year-old pilot with 28 years experience, asked the culprit
to own up. No one came forward and after 40 minutes, Bliss finally
let them go. |
He was then detained by police
at the airport for holding passengers against their will, Harrison
said.
"He was not arrested. He
was detained. He helped answer their questions," she said
by telephone from London.
She did not know how long the
questioning lasted but said Bliss had been allowed to go and
had flown the plane back from Malpensa to Stansted later in the
day.
"We are continuing to talk
to the police to make sure we answer all their questions,"
Harrison said. "We won't compromise on safety."
She said there was no likelihood
of any legal action against Bliss and said both sides were being
"very helpful". Police at Malpensa declined to comment
while questioning was still under way.
Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited. |