Alaska Airlines pilot accused of rape sues amid 'false #MeToo claims’
Paul Engelien filed a lawsuit against former First Officer Betty Pina after the 40-year-old woman made national headlines for her claims that the 51-year-old captain drugged and raped her during a layover on a work trip in Minnesota in June 2017.
A former senior Alaska Airlines pilot who was fired earlier this year after a female co-pilot sued the airline, alleging that the captain drugged and raped her during a June 2017 work trip, has filed a lawsuit of his own against his accuser and the carrier. The aviator, who flew for Alaska for 22 years, claims he was wrongly terminated amid “false #MeToo claims” in a “negligent, flawed investigation.”
Paul Engelien filed the lawsuit against former First Officer Betty Pina after the 40-year-old woman claimed the captain, 51, drugged and raped her during a layover on a work trip to Minnesota in June 2017, the Seattle Times reported on Nov. 2.
According to Engelien’s litigation, Pina falsely invented the claims of sexual assault in order to avoid “workplace discipline” given her status as a probationary employee. The former military pilots were subjected to a “routine, internal” alcohol-consumption violation investigation by Alaska regarding their actions on the trip.
Officials at Alaska believed that the pair may have violated the airline’s ten-hour alcohol rule during the work trip, which prohibits pilots from consuming alcohol within ten hours of duty. (Reuters/LinkedIn)
AMERICAN AIRLINES SERVED TOO MUCH ALCOHOL TO PASSENGER WHO SEXUALLY ASSAULTED WOMAN, LAWSUIT CLAIMS
Officials at Alaska believed that the pair may have violated the airline’s ten-hour alcohol rule during layover, which prohibits pilots from consuming alcohol within ten hours of duty.
“Pina’s false claims defamed Engelien, invaded his privacy, decimated his life and career, and caused him severe distress,” Engelien's lawsuit states, arguing that Alaska’s human resources advisor lead a “negligent, flawed and pretextual [internal] investigation” regarding the claims.
The lawsuit also states that Pina was previously involved in a similar incident during her time working for Alaska in May 2017, during which she reportedly “drank too much, blacked out, then later blamed others,” the Times reports.
According to Pina’s LinkedIn profile, she now flies for a Hawaii-based carrier.
Engelien was grounded by Alaska almost immediately after news of Pina’s lawsuit broke in March 2018, before his employment with the airline was terminated. (iStock)
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Engelien was grounded by Alaska almost immediately after news of Pina’s lawsuit broke in March 2018, before his employment with the airline was eventually terminated.
Though Pina’s lawsuit against Alaska was settled out of court in September of this year, Engelien claims that he has suffered “devastating economic, emotional and reputations injuries and damages” as caused by accuser’s “false #MeToo” claims" in the lawsuit.
Representatives for Alaska Airlines did not immediately return Fox News’ request for comment on the story.