Flying Drunk

Flying Drunk

By Joseph Balzer
$29.99
Quantity:
window.theme = window.theme || {}; window.theme.preorder_products_on_page = window.theme.preorder_products_on_page || [];
In 1998, a man came to my office looking for a job as a pilot for American Airlines. I had 50,000 applications for only 80 jobs per month. The story he told me nearly caused me to fall out of my chair. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. I asked myself, ‘Do people like this deserve second chances?’ What would the reaction be of the corporation in this very sensitive business? Or the FAA and his fellow pilots—very conservative groups to say the least? I prayed, and was almost immediately reminded that “Jesus never fails.” He hasn’t, and today Joe Balzer is a 10-year pilot with American Airlines. In my 50-year aviation career, his hiring was my greatest success.
Captain C. D. Ewell, American Airlines, Vice President–Flight and Chief Pilot (Ret.)

March 8, 1990: An intoxicated three-man crew, including Flight Engineer Joseph Balzer, fly a Northwest Airlines Boeing 727 with 91 passengers aboard from Fargo, North Dakota to Minneapolis, Minnesota. July 25, 1990: All three pilots stand trial for flying a commercial airliner while under the influence of alcohol; all three are convicted and sent to federal prison. July 26, 1990 – Present: Joe Balzer fights for redemption and to regain all that he has lost. Flying Drunk is his story.