Out of the cockpit and into handcuffs, a pilot from Lakewood, also an Air Force Academy grad, is accused of being too drunk to fly after he failed a breath test before take-off.

One of the passengers aboard that plane says they had no idea what was going on. Ramey Becker says it was like any other flight until someone came on-board and said that there was a medical emergency. An hour later, the passengers were told the flight was canceled.

United flight 949 was a London flight bound for Chicago Monday afternoon. It was suddenly canceled when the pilot's own colleagues blew the whistle that 51-year-old Erwin Washington was suspected of drinking before boarding.

“I was surprised, surprised when I saw that, but relieved that someone at United had good sense to notice the pilot smelled like alcohol and did something about it," says Becker.

Right now, Washington is suspended, United says, while the incident is investigated.

“The FAA minimum rule is eight hours before flight alcohol is prohibited. Most airlines have more stringent rules. For instance, United apparently has a 12 hour rule. Other airlines have greater, some have less. The general rule for pilots - what they call the bottle to throttle rule - is don't drink 24 hours before you fly," says former NTSB managing director Peter Goelz.

The pilot will be grounded until at least November 20th, when he's scheduled to appear in a London court. If Erwin Washington is found guilty, analysts say he may not lose his wings, but depending on how high his blood alcohol level allegedly was, he could potentially face up to two years behind bars.

This is the third American pilot arrested at London's Heathrow Airport in the past year for allegedly being over Britain's strict alcohol limit, a limit that amounts to about a half a glass of beer.