AIRLINE chiefs are to cough up £500 compensation to each of the 250 passengers booked on a flight that was cancelled after two pilots were charged with being drunk.

The president of Canadian airline Air Transat has announced that all those due to fly on the plane from Glasgow to Toronto on Monday will now be compensated for the scrapped journey.

The announcement comes after Air Transat faced a storm of outrage on social media for originally offering passengers, whose journey was delayed by a day, just £115 off any future flights they booked with the airline.

EU rules state a passenger is entitled to up to 600 Euros, around £500, in the event a flight longer than 3,500km is cancelled or delayed for more than two hours.

And airline chief Jean-Francois Lemay has now released a statement saying: “We will be compensating all passengers on this flight pursuant to the applicable European regulations.”

The airline also confirmed the two pilots – Jean-Francois Perreault and Imran Zafar Syed – had been suspended at least until an internal investigation had been concluded.

The statement said: “The issue of the July 18 arrest of two Air Transat pilots in Glasgow is a complex one, and because the matter is the subject of judicial proceedings in Scotland, the airline will not comment at this point. Both pilots, who are personally facing charges, have received an administrative suspension for the duration of the carrier’s internal investigation.

“Air Transat reiterates that the safety of its passengers and crew is the number one priority for the carrier.”

Perreault, 39, and Syed, 37, both from Ontario, were arrested by police on suspicion of being “impaired through alcohol” shortly before the Airbus A310 plane with around 250 passengers was due to take off from Glasgow Airport.

Both were charged under the Railway and Transport Safety Act which covers alcohol and drugs in aviation.

They also face a further charge of using threatening and abusive behaviour. The pair appeared at Paisley Sheriff Court on Tuesday where they made no plea or declaration and were remanded in custody until their next appearance.

Following the incident on Tuesday Air Transat apologised to passengers and offered 200 Canadian Dollars, around £115, in compensation off their next flight as “a goodwill gesture”.

They were put on a replacement flight on Tuesday which took off at 10.30am.

Mr Lemay added: “Canadian and European rules and regulations that we are subject to regarding alcohol consumption are very strict. Our own internal rules are even more stringent, and we do not tolerate any failure to comply.

“We have always taken, and we will continue to take, all necessary measures to ensure those rules are followed to the letter, and we are counting on the flawless cooperation of all our personnel in that respect.

“We will be compensating all passengers on this flight pursuant to the applicable European regulations.”