'...some of the other captains assured me that pilots were exempt from their religious duties when flying in the interests of safety'

'...some of the other captains assured me that pilots were exempt from their religious duties when flying in the interests of safety'

Mike Mahon remembers training a devout Muslim pilot, who refused to drink or eat whilst flying during Ramadan.

Mike Mahon

Trinity College Dublin

2001

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Mike Mahon

Work and Employment

Life Story

Bahrain

2000s

At one stage I got involved in training some of the new young copilots. The majority were fine, dedicate to the job and eager to learn. But I came across one individual who was a devout Moslem. It was the time of Ramadan and all good Moslems were required to fast during daylight hours. We had a long duty day , to operate six sectors and this muppet refused to eat or even take a drink of water. Eventually he collapsed from exhaustion and dehydration. This, I thought is taking religion too far, but some of the other captains assured me that pilots were exempt from their religious duties when flying in the interests of safety. But you always get one wally.

Irish Research Council for Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences (IRCHSS)

Dr Kathleen McTiernan (Trinity College Dublin)

Dr Deirdre O'Donnell (Trinity College Dublin)