US Airways CEO admits 2 prior DUI convictions

US Airways chief Doug Parker was convicted twice before of drunken driving, both times in his twenties, he said on Friday. The 45-year-old CEO of the Tempe-based airline made the announcement late Friday after being contacted by reporters about past convictions.

Scottsdale police arrested Parker on suspicion of drunken driving on Jan. 31, just hours after US Airways lost a $9.8 billion bid to acquire Delta Air Lines. The arrest did not come to light until Thursday night when police confirmed it to the Tribune.

Parker denied the recent arrest pointed to a pattern.

“My mistake of last week was just that — a mistake, not a trend and I believe that events from 15 and 20 years ago do not reflect on the person I am today,” he wrote in a statement.

At least one of the convictions was in Dallas in 1991, according to court records, when he was a financial manager with American Airlines. The carrier is headquartered in that city.

Details of the other conviction were not released by Parker and not available late Friday. It’s unclear if he spent time in jail for either one.

Parker also said he was involved in another “alcohol-related” incident when he was a passenger in a friend’s car in college. He provided no further details.

“I will accept the consequences of my actions and I will ensure that it doesn’t happen again,” he wrote to employees in the second of three public statements released on Friday. “Again, I apologize to you and appreciate the hundreds of notes of encouragement that I have received from you already.”

Parker’s most recent arrest came after leaving an event US Airways sponsored at the FBR Open golf tournament in Scottsdale.

He was pulled over for speeding in his black BMW on Pima Road just south of Bell Road by an officer who was part of a special DUI patrol.

The officer noted Parker’s eyes looked bloodshot and watery, his breath smelled like alcohol and his speech was slurred. Parker told the officer he drank three beers in two hours at the event but did not feel impaired.

“When asked if I had had anything to drink, I answered truthfully,” Parker wrote in one of the statements.

Parker’s blood was drawn at a nearby police station. He was booked and sent home in a taxi.

Scottsdale police spokesman Sgt. Mark Clark said Friday the results of Parker’s blood test came back showing his blood-alcohol level was 0.096, more than the state’s legal limit of 0.08.

Parker had two passengers in his car at the time. US Airways spokeswoman Elise Eberwein said Parker told her he was driving two friends home who had too much to drink at the event.

“I have let down all of you and also my family, and that is something I will have to live with irrespective of the outcome,” Parker wrote to employees.

Eberwein said Parker spent part of Thursday night telling his three children about the arrest after he learned it would be in the newspaper. He would not comment to the Tribune at the time.

“I got my wake-up call long ago as I got married, had kids, and assumed positions of responsibility at work,” he wrote in Friday night’s announcement.

It is not clear what effect, if any, the past convictions could have on Parker’s sentencing if he is convicted. He is due in Scottsdale city court on Feb. 21.