Coastguard pilot suspended for using helicopter to buy meat
PA
A coastguard helicopter pilot has been suspended in Shetland after he used a chopper to pick up meat from his favourite butcher on the remote Scottish island.
A video posted on YouTube showing the helicopter landing in a field in Orkney and two crew members getting out has since been removed, reported the BBC.
The footage showed the crew walking over to a group of butchers who handed over a bag of Orkney beef before the crew returned to the helicopter.
The pilot's employer, CHC Helicopter, provides search and rescue services to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. At the time of the incident, the aircraft had finished a training exercise so the flying was not on behalf of the coastguard meaning CHC would have to cover the costs of a non-operational flight.
A spokeswoman for CHC said: 'We can confirm that a pilot has been suspended pending the results of a formal investigation.
'We expect high standards of professionalism from all our employees and, if we find these have not been met, we will take the appropriate action.
'While the aircraft was previously engaged in a training exercise, it was operating a non-revenue flight at the time of the incident in question.'
Butcher Thorfinn Craigie said £400 worth of premium-quality meat was bought and said he was horrified that the pilot had been suspended.
Related articles
Man arrested for landing helicopter on Pacific Island to buy sweets
Is this the future for travel? Germand launch the 'multicopter'
Sign up to our weekly newsletterFollow us on TwitterBecome a fan on Facebook
