LEADER 05227nam 2200565 a 450 001 9910781718703321 005 20221108075750.0 010 $a1-61121-048-8 035 $a(CKB)2550000000054472 035 $a(DLC)2010277138 035 $a(StDuBDS)AH24485915 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000565140 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)12199693 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000565140 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10529048 035 $a(PQKB)11219952 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC3007475 035 $a(Au-PeEL)EBL3007475 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebr10498899 035 $a(OCoLC)748403132 035 $a(EXLCZ)992550000000054472 100 $a20100301d2009 uy 0 101 0 $aeng 135 $aur||||||||||| 181 $ctxt 182 $cc 183 $acr 200 10$aFlying drunk$b[electronic resource] $ea Northwest Airlines flight, three drunk pilots, and one man's fight for redemption /$fJoseph Balzer 205 $a2nd ed. 210 $aNew York $cSavas Beatie$dc2009 215 $a1 online resource (xiii, 225 p. ) $cill 300 $aFirst printing. 311 $a1-932714-71-5 327 $aA Northwest Airlines Flight, Three Drunk Pilots, and One Man's Fight for Redemption -- Contents -- Contents -- Foreword -- Prologue -- A Note on Sources -- Early Life -- Adolescent Years -- Dreaming of Flying -- Joe the Teacher -- Liftoff -- Delta is Ready When You Are -- Paying My Dues -- Eastern: "The Pilot's Airline" -- Northwest Airlines: I'm Flying a Bowling Shoe! -- The Five-Day Trip From Hell -- Nightmare in Fargo -- The Worst Day of My Life -- The Calm Before the Storm -- Stranded and Alone -- Media Circus -- Tragic Homecoming -- Criminal Charges -- "Under the Influence" -- Getting Real -- Trial-and Errors -- A Brief Reprieve -- Turning Myself In -- Wrong Turn? -- Heavy Metal -- The Big House -- Happy New Year! -- Stayin' Alive -- Oh No, Not "The Hole!" -- Watch Your Six O'clock -- "Halfway" Home -- Home Sweet Home -- Angels and Wings -- Yonder the Wild Blue -- Just Call Me "Captain" -- Dreaming the Impossible -- Go Ahead, Make My Day -- The Day of Reckoning -- "This is Your Captain Speaking" -- Facts Established at Trial. 330 $aMarch 8, 1990: An intoxicated three-man crew, including Flight Engineer Joseph Balzer, fly a Northwest Airlines Boeing 727 with 91 passengers aboard from Fargo, North Dakota to Minneapolis, Minnesota. July 25, 1990: All three pilots stand trial for flying a commercial airliner while under the influence of alcohol; all three are convicted and sent to federal prison. July 26, 1990 - present: Joe Balzer fights for redemption and to regain all that he has lost. Flying Drunk is his story. Since he was a young boy, Joe Balzer dreamed of flying. He pursued his goal with a vigorous passion and earned his pilot licenses, piling up hours of flight time with a wide variety of planes and jets with one overarching goal: to one day fly for a major airline. But Joe had a problem. He was an alcoholic and refused to admit to himself that he had a problem. His alcoholism caught up with him in March 1990, when Joe was arrested with two other pilots for flying a commercial airliner while under the influence of alcohol. His world began crumbling around him and his new marriage faced the ultimate test. He lost his promising career and his dignity. Every major media outlet, including The New York Times, Newsweek, and Time Magazine covered the shocking story for the stunned American flying public. The trial that followed drained Joe's life's savings and federal prison nearly broke him. Flying Drunk is Joe's bittersweet and thoroughly chilling memoir of his twisted journey to a Federal courtroom, his time in the notorious Federal penitentiary system in Atlanta, and his struggle to recapture all that he held dear. Today, Joe is a recovering alcoholic, celebrating more than nineteen years of sobriety. The long road back from perdition led him to American Airlines, where good people and a great organization recognized a talented pilot who had cleaned up his act and was 330 8 $aready to fly again, safely. Flying Drunk is an incredible journey of the human spirit, from childhood to hell, and back again. Everyone should read and heed its message of hope and redemption. No one who does will ever forget it. About the Author: Joe Balzer is a pilot for American Airlines with more than 15,000 hours of flight experience. He has a Master's Degree in Aerospace Education and is also an inspirational speaker, traveling around the country speaking to pilots and other groups on the dangers of alcohol and other addictions, bringing his audience to laughter and tears with his powerful message of hope. Joe lives in Tennessee with his wife Deborah and their two children. Flying Drunk is his first book. 606 $aAir pilots$zUnited States$vBiography 606 $aAlcoholics$zUnited States$vBiography 615 0$aAir pilots 615 0$aAlcoholics 676 $a362.292092 676 $aB 700 $aBalzer$b Joseph Wesley$01487280 801 0$bMiAaPQ 801 1$bMiAaPQ 801 2$bMiAaPQ 906 $aBOOK 912 $a9910781718703321 996 $aFlying drunk$93707073 997 $aUNINA