A Southwest Airlines pilot was removed from a plane at the airport in Savannah, Georgia, on Wednesday and charged with driving under the influence, according to authorities and jail records.

Mark Howell, a regional spokesperson for the Transportation Security Administration, said Thursday that one of its officers at Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport contacted law enforcement after “encountering an individual in the crew screening lane who smelled of alcohol and appeared intoxicated.”

The pilot, David Paul Allsop, 52, was arrested by airport police, Chatham County Sheriff’s Office records show. He was later released on a $3,500 bond, said Brianna Jones, a sheriff’s office spokesperson.

Allsop “was seated in the cockpit performing preflight checks” when police asked him to step out onto the jet bridge for questioning, the incident report said. Allsop, who police said smelled like alcohol and had bloodshot eyes, admitted to drinking a “few light beers” the night before, according to the incident report.

Josiah Best, a police officer who responded, administered several field sobriety tests. He wrote in his report that Allsop could not maintain his balance and was unable to follow a pen with his eyes. When Allsop refused to take a blood test, Best handcuffed Allsop and drove him to the Chatham County Detention Center, according to the report.

In a statement, Southwest said the “employee involved in the situation on Flight 3772 Wednesday morning from Savannah has been removed from duty.” The passengers, who were on the flight to Chicago Midway Airport, were put on other flights, the airline said. The company did not provide further details about the pilot’s employment or experience.

A spokesperson for the airport police said Thursday that she had no immediate comment.

The Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, the union that represents more than 11,000 Southwest pilots, did not reply to a request for comment. Allsop could not be reached by telephone; it was not immediately clear if he had a lawyer.

There were no further details about Allsop’s condition. The Federal Aviation Administration said its regulations prohibit pilots from using alcohol while on duty and from flying, or trying to fly, an aircraft within eight hours of consuming alcohol, or if they have a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.04 or greater.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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