A new breathalyser system at overseas airports is being introduced by Japan Airlines after one of its pilots was arrested at Heathrow for being drunk.
Katsutoshi Jitsukawa was arrested last month after a test showed he was over nine times the legal alcohol limit.
The new measures also come after a series of Jal flights were delayed due to intoxicated pilots, the BBC reported.
Japanese law does not set limits for alcohol consumption by pilots.
Instead, it is up to airlines to determine alcohol limits for pilots on duty.
Jitsukawa was arrested after he was found to have 189mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood in his system – the legal limit for a pilot in the UK is 20mg.
Jal said: “The company takes this violation seriously, as safety remains our utmost priority, and sincerely apologises to all affected by the employee’s actions.”
There have been 19 cases where the airline’s pilots have failed the company’s alcohol tests since August 2017, a spokesperson for the carrier said.
Twelve of these flights were delayed as a result, with the remaining seven operating on time because alternative crew members were found.
Jal will implement a series of measures as a result of the recent breaches.
These include new breathalyser systems at overseas airports and introducing penalties “for flight crew violating the regulated alcohol concentration level”.
The new systems are already in place at Heathrow and domestic airports in Japan, the spokesperson said.
They will be introduced at other airports on November 19.
Pilots will also be prohibited from consuming alcohol in the 24 hours prior to reporting for a flight from Japan, the airline said.
Other airlines have also had recent trouble with intoxicated flight crew, with Air India suspending a pilot for three years after failing an alcohol test earlier this week.