Diet triggers false drink test for Virgin pilot

A Virgin Atlantic aircraft lines up alongside other airlines at terminal two, Manchester Airport June 22, 2006. Virgin Atlantic Airways has reinstated a pilot wrongly accused of drinking after an investigation revealed that a low-carbohydrate diet made the man smell of alcohol.

LONDON (Reuters) - Virgin Atlantic Airways has reinstated a pilot wrongly accused of drinking after an investigation revealed that a low-carbohydrate diet made the man smell of alcohol.

The 47-year-old male pilot was on the flight deck of an Airbus A340-600 plane preparing to leave London's Heathrow Airport for New York when police boarded, having been tipped off by an airport worker.

"Virgin Atlantic can confirm that the pilot who was questioned by police on 31st March ...will not be charged with any offence," Virgin said in a statement on Tuesday.

"It is believed that a diet being followed by the pilot caused the initial positive reading during a preliminary breath test," Virgin said.

"Subsequent blood tests later confirmed that the amount of alcohol in his blood was the equivalent to that of a non-drinker."

The pilot, whose name was withheld, is free to resume his duties immediately, Virgin said.