US Airways CEO arrested on suspicion of drunken driving
Pittsburgh Business Times
Doug Parker, the chairman and CEO of US Airways Group Inc., was arrested recently on suspicion of driving under the influence in Arizona, an Arizona newspaper reported Friday.
According to the East Valley Tribune, Parker was stopped for speeding the night of Jan. 31, the same day a Delta Air Lines creditors' group rejected US Airways' $10.2 billion hostile takeover bid. US Airways then withdrew the offer for the bankrupt Delta (Pink Sheets:DALRQ).
He was returning home from a party linked to the FBR Open golf tournament in Scottsdale.
The newspaper cited a Scottsdale police report in saying Parker had watery eyes, alcohol on his breath and slurred speech when pulled over at 11:30 p.m.
Parker, who had two passengers in his BMW, told police he had three beers over a two-hour period, according to the report.
Police said Parker underwent roadside sobriety tests before being taken to a nearby outpost for booking and to have blood drawn for blood-alcohol content tests. He was sent home in a taxi, which is normal during DUI crackdowns.
On Friday, the Scottsdale Police Department said that Parker's blood-alcohol level was 0.096 percent. In Arizona, drivers are considered legally drunk if the level is 0.08 percent or higher.
Elise Eberwein, US Airways senior vice president for people, communications and culture, told the Tribune late Thursday that Parker told her he "is embarrassed beyond words and knows more is expected of him."
The newspaper said Parker declined comment.
Parker became chairman, president and CEO of America West Airlines in September 2001, just days before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 sent the airline industry into a tailspin.
Parker led America West into a merger with then-bankrupt US Airways, a deal that was first announced in May 2005 and completed four months later.
In January, the post-merger US Airways (NYSE:LCC) announced its first full-year profit. The airline serves 230 destinations in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America. US Airways is the dominant carrier at Pittsburgh International Airport with 49 percent of the traffic.
From the Philadelphia Business Journal
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