The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a Southwest Airlines pilot after he was caught on air traffic control transmissions apparently railing against the Bay Area in an expletive-filled rant.
The pilot was set off while taxiing at Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport, according to a statement from the FAA.
"Yeah, f--- this place. Goddamn liberal f----," the pilot can be heard saying in the recording, which was archived and verified by Live ATC, a website that livestreams air traffic control transmissions.
"F------ weirdos. Probably driving around in f------ Hyundais, f------ slow as s---, going slow as f---," the pilot continued. "You don't have balls unless you're f------ rolling coals ... goddamn it."
The context of the comments is not known.
"FAA regulations prohibit airline pilots from talking about subjects that are unrelated to safely conducting their flight while taxiing and while flying below 10,000 feet altitude," FAA spokesperson Ian Gregor said a statement. He added that the agency reported the incident to the airline.
SFGate reported that the pilot is a Southwest employee.
In a statement to NBC News on Friday, the airline said it was "fully addressing the situation internally."
"Our corporate Culture is built on a tenet of treating others with concern and dignity and the comments are inconsistent with the professional behavior and overall respect that we require from our Employees," the statement said.
Southwest did not identify the pilot.
"This situation was an isolated incident involving a single employee and not representative of the nearly 60,000 hardworking, respectful People of Southwest Airlines," the statement said.
