A BRITISH Airways pilot has been sacked after revealing to a stewardess that he snorted coke before trying to fly a jet back to the UK.
Here's everything we know about former BA pilot Mike Beaton and why he was sacked.
Who is Mike Beaton?
Mike Beaton is a former British Airways pilot from Devon.
Beaton, who is a dad of one, also runs a retreat with his wife.
What did Mike Beaton do?
On September 26, 2023, it was reported that British Airways First Officer Mike Beaton snorted coke off a woman’s bare breasts before trying to fly a packed jet back to the UK.
The information came to light after Beaton flew to Johannesburg.
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There, he had downtime before he was scheduled to co-pilot a return flight to London.
Discussing his night off with a colleague and close friend via text, Beaton told her that he met two local lads, a female Welsh holidaymaker and a “young Spanish bird” at a nightclub in the city.
The pilot boasted: ''We all walk (stagger) back up to the hotel bar for ‘one last one before bed’.
''Welsh and one of these guys is getting on very well, but she’s told him that I’m her boyfriend.
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''Couple of drinks in the bar, bit of snogging, and then we’re somehow all on our way to this dude’s flat.
"Welsh has decided that I should actually be her boyfriend — Spanish has hooked up with one of the two local lads and is having her t**s sucked on their sofa.”
The ex-pilot continued: ''I’ve lost my shirt somewhere and one of the local lads produces a plate with a few lines of coke.
"So then there’s a debate about whose chest is the best to do a bump off.''
He added: ''That’s the story of how I ended up snorting coke off a girl’s t**s in Joburg.''
Beaton then admitted the evening had taken its toll, confessing: ''Stayed the night with Welsh, sh** her for ages (I guess the coke played a part) and then was so f** I couldn’t even lift my head until gone 2.''
The former First officer was about to fly from South Africa to London last month when a worried stewardess raised the alarm.
This led shocked bosses to cancel the 12-hour flight.
The cancellation is thought to have cost BA an estimated £100,000.
Why was Mike Beaton sacked?
After the appalled pal and colleague reported him to bosses, Beaton was suspended before being flown home the following day as a passenger.
He was then drug-tested at Heathrow, which came back to be positive, resulting in Beaton being sacked.
An airline spokesman told The Sun: ''Safety is always our top priority.
"The matter was referred to the CAA and this individual no longer works for us.''
Beaton has now had his medical certificate withdrawn by The Civil Aviation Authority.
This means he is now banned from the flight deck.
A spokesman for The CAA told The Sun: ''An airline must immediately inform us if a UK pilot has misused drink or drugs boarding, or being on board, an aircraft.
''In these cases we would immediately suspend the pilot’s medical which means they cannot fly.
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''In most cases the pilot would have an assessment with an expert medical team and if they wished to return to flying then a comprehensive rehabilitation programme would be put in place.
"The medical would only be reinstated if we were completely satisfied.''
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