Aer Lingus Pilot Says He Delayed Reporting Incident Due to Fear of ‘Retribution’

An Aer Lingus pilot who was stripped of his command duties after his aircraft failed to capture a navigation beacon on approach to Dublin Airport in 2023 told the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) that he delayed reporting the incident because he feared “retribution” from senior airline personnel.

Declan McCabe (53), who has been with Aer Lingus since 1999, has filed complaints under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014, the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, and the Payment of Wages Act 1997 after being demoted from captain following a disciplinary investigation. Aer Lingus denies all allegations.

Giving evidence on Tuesday, McCabe said that on June 8, 2023, he and his first officer were flying an Airbus A320neo with 154 passengers and crew into Dublin Airport when the aircraft “didn’t capture” the radio beacon that provides the approach path to the assigned runway.

“The weather was clear; we could see the runway,” he told the tribunal. “If it was in cloud, you might consider a missed approach, come back around and complete the approach again.” After passing through the expected beacon signal, he manually turned the aircraft to re-intercept it, obtained the proper guidance, and landed safely.

Asked why he did not immediately report the incident, McCabe said the airline’s manual only requires pilots to report a “false localiser capture”—a situation in which a distorted radio signal incorrectly indicates the runway vector. “What I did on the day was what I was supposed to do, and that’s written in the manual,” he said. “In my judgment, there was no area where safety was compromised.”

The tribunal heard that Capt Colm Wynne, a senior managing pilot, contacted McCabe eight days later, forwarding a notification from Air Nav Ireland—the State air traffic service provider—and asking him to respond. McCabe replied directly to Air Nav Ireland but did not copy Capt Wynne, later submitting a safety report at another manager’s request.

McCabe acknowledged under questioning from his barrister, David Byrnes of Setanta Solicitors, that “there was no love lost” between him and Capt Wynne. He said Wynne previously chaired a disciplinary process that resulted in a finding that McCabe had shown “total disregard” for Aer Lingus’s commercial interests when he declared himself too fatigued to fly in July 2011—an outcome McCabe described as “outrageous.”

In his internal report on the 2023 incident, McCabe wrote: “The report was delayed because I fear further retribution from certain flight operations personnel.”

Representing Aer Lingus, Tom Mallon—appearing on instructions from Katie Rooney of Arthur Cox—said the airline “makes no apologies whatsoever for putting safety first,” adding that McCabe’s demotion followed a “full internal process.”

Adjudicator John Harraghy adjourned the hearing until Wednesday. The case is expected to continue for three further days next week.

Sources: AirGuide Business airguide.info, bing.com, irishtimes.com