Austral Lineas Pilots Fired Over Photo From Playboy’s Viky Xipolitakis [Video]
A Viky Xipolitakis photo ended with an airline having two Austral Lineas pilots fired, since it showed them posing with a Playboy model within the cockpit. The pilots, Patricio Zocchi Molina and Federico Matias Soaje, may face years in prison and even a lawsuit, but Xipolitakis is “throwing the pilots under the bus,” based upon some reports.
In a related report by the Inquisitr, the company had the two Austral Lineas pilots fired not only due to the photo, but because Viky Xipolitakis claimed she was allowed to fly the plane. Describing the experience on Twitter, the Playboy bikini model described herself as an “extra pilot.”
“I even drove the plane!” she declared. “It was an extraordinary experience!”
Mariano Recalde, the president of the state-owned Aerolíneas Argentinas, was not amused by these claims.
“These are responsibilities that have put lives at risk. As soon as we became aware of the situation, we dismissed the pilots,” Recalde said. “They are two irresponsible people who put at risk the security of people and we will request justice to investigate, as the 190 article of the Penal Code expresses.”
Aerolíneas Argentinas also released a statement directly explaining why they had the Austral Lineas pilots fired for their actions.
“Regarding what happened during flight 2708, pilots Patricio Zocchi Molina and Federico Matias Soaje were discharged and will be sacked like the rest of the staff who had a responsibility for the incident. Legal actions will be issued against the above mentioned and also against the passenger involved for putting the flight’s security at risk.”
According to the Buenos Aires Herald, the two pilots face between two and eight years in prison. A $10 million civil lawsuit is also being pursued by a Buenos Aires attorney, who is filing on behalf of the 11 passengers on the flight.
Viky Xipolitakis’ photos have since been deleted from her Twitter account, including the self-incriminating selfie, but she is also claiming the pilots should have known better.
“I never thought I could cause such harm. I am deeply sad. I had a wonderful experience in the flight and never thought it could cause such fuss. I didn’t do it with malice or second intentions,” Xipolitakis claims. “I didn’t know I couldn’t go into the cockpit. The pilots should have told me not to.”
As USA Today put it, not only were the Austral Lineas pilots fired, but Xipolitakis threw “the pilots under the bus. That’s probably the only method of transportation they’ll be using for a while anyway.”
[Image: Viky Xipolitakis’ Twitter Feed]
