By Fay Simmons

Tribune Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

Bahamasair yesterday said it has dismissed a senior pilot following an internal probe into a cockpit dispute with a co-pilot that temporarily grounded a flight in Marsh Harbour and disrupted operations.

The pilot, who had been with the airline for 12 years, was terminated after Bahamasair reviewed the incident and received voice messages determined to be “inappropriate and inconsistent” with the company’s professional standards.

Tracy Cooper, the national flag carrier's managing director, explained that the flight from Nassau to Marsh Harbour arrived without issue. However, the first officer reported concerns about “cockpit dynamics” and recommended that the flight not continue until the matter was reviewed.

As a precaution, both pilots were relieved of duty, and replacement crew were dispatched. The flight later continued to West Palm Beach without further problems.

“A formal debriefing was scheduled for the following day, Monday, but prior to the debrief, Bahamasair received voice messages determined to be from the captain in question, which were found to be inappropriate and inconsistent with the airline's professional standards,” said Mr Cooper.

“Bahamasair maintains a zero tolerance policy towards any form of intimidation or unprofessional conduct. While no safety issues were reported during the flight, the airline reviews this matter with the utmost seriousness. The captain involved has since been relieved of his duties, and he is no longer employed with the airline.”

The termination comes at a time when Bahamasair is already managing tight crew resources.

Mr Cooper acknowledged that the incident has created extra strain for the airline’s operations. “We don't have an abundance, an overstock, of flight crew, to put it nicely, so we try to keep as many flight crews as needed. Obviously, we will have to make adjustments moving forward,” he said, suggesting that route planning and crew scheduling may need to be reassessed in the coming weeks.

Mr Cooper said passengers affected by the delay were offered compensation, particularly those who missed connecting flights or important appointments. "Passengers that had missed connection, we would have re-accommodated them. For passengers that would have appointments or whatever, once they would have told us, then they would have been re-accommodated,” he added.

Adding further context, Mr Cooper revealed that the same pilot had been the subject of internal concerns just a week before the incident in Abaco. He said the pilot had been brought in for discussions about his management of the aircraft and was advised on necessary changes

“On the 25th of August, which was a week before the flight, the captain in question was actually brought in because we had some concerns as to his level of management of the airplane. He was, at that time, advised and told what needed to be done, what he needed to do to change his ways, and rather than take our advisement to him, he responded in the way that he did,” said Mr Cooper.

He added that while such issues are rare, the airline takes any deviation from protocol or professional expectations seriously. “Evidently, we do have a monitoring system. This is not something that happens in our cockpit too often," Mr Cooper said.

"I wouldn't say we're all human. So when we see something that is not up to our standards, it is being addressed and, in this instance, he was just reacting, we would say, not positively to our positive influence that we were trying to place on him."