Police in Scotland detained the two on suspicion of being under the influence, prior to the Air Transat A310 flight to Canada which they were in charge of taking off.

Airline staff are understood to have raised concerns about the pilots’ conduct on Monday (July 18) afternoon before the aircraft was scheduled to depart from Glasgow, Metro reported.

Officers arrested the pilots, aged 37 and 39 respectively, for allegedly being "impaired through alcohol" – they will appear in custody at Paisley Sheriff Court later today.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Police Scotland can confirm that two men aged 39 and 37 years have been arrested in relation to being allegedly impaired through alcohol under the Railway and Transport Safety Act 2003 (Section 93).”

Air Transat confirmed the arrest of its employees and said the service had been rescheduled for today with passengers given overnight accommodation.

A spokesperson for the airline said: “Air Transat has learned of the arrest on July 18 of two crew members assigned to its Glasgow-Toronto flight.

“We will await the results of the investigation and judicial proceedings before commenting on the matter before making any further comments. The safety of our crews and passengers is, and will remain, a top priority at Air Transat.”