Downers in aviation drug test protocols: Pilots oppose new narco rules

Surprisingly, the DGCA has mandated that only 10 per cent of an airline's staff need to be checked for psychoactive substance use in a year

Picture this: A pilot heads to Europe for a week’s vacation and smokes marijuana, which is legal there. After resting over the weekend, she commands two flights to Delhi and back on Monday.

After her last landing at Mumbai, the airline orders her to submit her urine sample for testing for psychoactive substances. Her urine tests positive for marijuana and she is sent for a week’s rehabilitation.

A year later she revisits Amsterdam for a week but this time abstains from marijuana. She commands two flights after her return. In the next urine test, her urine throws up trace concentrations