What’s an aircraft engineer to do when he’s stuck on the tarmac and hunger strikes? Drive the airport tow-tug to the local servo for a quick bite to eat – duh!
That’s exactly what a Jetstar employee did in July last year when felt a little peckish mid-shift.
The low-cost carrier was forced to rehire 60-year-old aircraft maintenance engineer Raghbir Gill this week, eight months after he drove the airport vehicle out of Avalon Airport and to a nearby BP service station, The Herald Sun reported.
A report by Fair Work Commission found Gill’s actions caused several safety breaches, including almost crushing an apprentice with unchecked landing gear and leaking oil onto the runway, which forced that Japan-bound plane to re-land after takeoff.
Fair Work Commissioner Anna-Lee Cribb said that although the worker broke the rules, his actions were hunger-driven.
“He did not think about the safety regulations, only lunch.”
Anna-Lee Cribb, Fair Work Commissioner
Jetstar disputed this by saying he had broken a “cardinal rule”, which Gill’s lawyer, Daniel Victory, rebutted by highlighting that other engineers had committed similar safety accidents and managed to retain their jobs.
A Jetstar spokesperson told the publication that the carrier was still deciding whether to challenge Fair Work Australia’s decision.