Gregory Polek has spent his entire career in aviation journalism with AIN, starting as a proofreader and assistant to then-managing editor Mary Mahoney in 1995 after serving an internship with&nbsp;New Jersey Monthly&nbsp;magazine and completing his B.A. degree in English/Writing at New Jersey’s William Paterson College. By 1997 Polek accepted a position as an associate editor, covering the regional airline beat for&nbsp;Aviation International News&nbsp;in place of retiring industry veteran Don Anderson. The assignment took Polek across North America and Europe to profile regional airlines varying in size and mission from the likes of floatplane operators Kenmore Air and Chalk’s Ocean Airways to regional jet operators such as SkyWest and American Eagle. Today, in his dual role as Air Transport Editor and International Airshow Editor, Polek writes, edits, and manages AIN’s commercial aviation content while overseeing each of the company’s daily international air show publications in Paris, Farnborough, Singapore, and Dubai. Most recently Polek has assumed oversight of daily coverage of the Helicopter Association International’s annual Heli-Expo convention.

Senior Editor

Gregory Polek

Pilots from two different regional airlines lost their jobs for alcohol-related offenses over the span of two weeks, further adding to an undercurrent of public suspicion produced by the July 1 arrest of two America West pilots for the same reason. On July 28 airport officials removed an ASA first officer from a scheduled flight from Wilmington, N.C., to Atlanta after a TSA security screener claimed to smell alcohol on his breath. All 28 passengers were removed from the flight after sitting in the 30-seat turboprop for roughly half an hour after its scheduled departure. The Atlanta-based Embraer Brasilia pilot resigned from the company three days later.
Less than two weeks passed when, on August 9, airport security in Little Rock, Ark., detained two Mesa Airlines Embraer ERJ-145 pilots and a flight attendant on their way to a scheduled flight to Charlotte, N.C. Mesa fired the captain, who tested positive for alcohol levels above the legal limit. The Phoenix-based airline suspended the first officer and accepted the resignation of the flight attendant, both of whom passed the Breathalyzer test.

ASA, Mesa Pilots Caught Drunk on the Job

Pilots from two different regional airlines lost their jobs for alcohol-related offenses over the span of two weeks, further adding to an undercurrent of p

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

AIN Products

SUBSCRIPTIONS

RESOURCES

ABOUT AIN