National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines (VNA) has announced it will dismiss a captain who has tested positive for drugs.

Captain P.H.D., 36, has been suspended from work and will be sacked as his medical test results showed he was positive for drugs, Dang Anh Tuan, deputy general director and spokesperson of VNA, said on Wednesday.

The carrier has reported the case to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV), stating that D.’s blood and urine samples were found containing synthetic drugs, as shown in a testing report from Medlatec General Hospital in Hanoi, Tuan said.

He added that VNA has been carrying out procedures to handle P.’s violation, for which he will receive the highest disciplinary action.

“Any violators must be strictly punished,” the spokesman stated.

On April 25, after P. refused a pre-flight drug test at the airline’s medical station, the captain was taken to the aforementioned hospital for testing, which showed he was positive for ketamine, a type of synthetic drugs.

D. then reported that he had used two pain relievers – Ultracet and Efferalgan Codeine – without a doctor's prescription before the test.

On July 7, the CAAV’s Aviation Medical Center issued a report affirming that the banned substance found in D.’s samples had no connection with his use of the relievers. 

The active ingredients in these two medications are not the same as those in ketamine and they cannot form ketamine through the metabolism process in the body, the center stated. 

Speaking to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Wednesday, a leader from the CAAV asserted that any pilot found using drugs will have their pilot license revoked permanently.

D. used to be a famous child actor who appeared in many Vietnamese TV series.

After reaching adulthood, he gave up his acting profession and pursued a new career as a pilot. 

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