Chinese Airline Demands Odor Free Pilots, Sniffs Armpits at Job Interviews

A pilot should have good vision and fast reflexes, that much is a given. But Hainan Airlines has an additional requirement for its pilots, which is a bit harder to explain...

China's fourth largest airline demands that its pilots be odor free. They are so determined to keep their planes free of B.O. that their recruiters are required to sniff any potential hire's armpit during the interview process.

According to the airline, the rational behind this smell test is that pilots sometimes interact with the public.

So far the policy has cost one aspiring pilot a spot in the cockpit. "I was doomed by my armpits, which are always a bit whiffy," said the unidentified recruit, who'd passed all of the airline's other tests.

Given the apparent level of outright smell discrimination in China, he would be wise to remain unidentified