Pilot's sacking over Rovers star upheld

2:27pm Monday 26th November 2007

Comments (29)   Have your say »

By Sally Henfield »

AN airline pilot, sacked for allowing Blackburn Rovers star Robbie Savage into his cockpit, has lost an appeal to get his job back.

Captain Pablo Mason was fired by Helmshore-based MyTravel after he allowed the midfielder on to the flight deck to calm his nerves.

LET US KNOW

Have you been allowed into a cockpit? Add your comments below.

The footballer had vowed to help the Gulf war hero with his appeal, but the company's board upheld the dismissal on the grounds that Captain Mason had broken strict anti-terrorism rules.

Captain Mason, who carried out 23 bombing missions over Iraq during the first Gulf War, plans to take his case to an industrial tribunal.

He said: "I was shell-shocked by the decision. It was an utter disappointment. I expected some form of disciplinary sanction and then reinstatement to the job that I love. This is an abject disappointment."

Captain Mason had invited Savage into the Airbus A320s's cockpit on the return private charter flight after Rovers' 1-0 victory over MyPa-47 in Finland in August.

The player has a fear of flying and the captain thought it would be helpful if he could see what was going on at the controls.

But the visit breeched strict regulatory authority policy which bans unauthorised personnel from the flight deck. The rules were brought in following the September 11 attacks.

It is thought someone on the flight reported what had happened, and 57-year-old Captain Mason, from Leamington Spa, Warwick-shire, was sacked from his £90,000-a-year job. Captain Mason has always maintained that his actions did not put those onboard at risk. He said: "Robbie Savage is a charming man. I find it appalling that there has been suggestions his presence in the cockpit created a danger to other passengers."

Staff at Blackburn Rovers wrote to MyTravel to defend Captain Mason's actions and Robbie Savage also offered to speak at his appeal.

Captain Mason added: "The support from Blackburn Rovers has been phenomenal.

"I have a reputation that has been built up through almost 40 years of flying and it has been thrown into the bin by a very corporate corporation."

A MyTravel Airways spokesperson said: "The board which heard Captain Mason's appeal upheld the sanction of dismissal for his offence of allowing an unauthorised person access to the flight deck in contravention of the current DfT security directive.