US: Pilots fell asleep midair
Two airline pilots fell asleep in the cockpit on the approach to a major international airport, it emerged today.
The captain and first officer were flying an Airbus into Denver International Airport at more than 500 mph when they nodded off, according to an official US air safety website.
The incident, which happened in March, 2004, was one of several that were revealed during a congressional hearing on airline safety in Washington this week.
In the report the pilot, who was not identified, said he was flying an overnight flight, known as a “red-eye” from Denver to Baltimore, returning after just an hour’s break.
He writes on the confidential federal air incident report site: “No rest. Just straight seven hours and 55 minute-flight to Baltimore and back. On this particular day in March 2004, after two previous red-eyes, this being the third red-eye in a row, the last 45 minutes of the flight, I fell asleep and so did the first officer.”
The captain was woken by frantic calls from air traffic control telling him he had missed his reporting point, was too high and too fast.
He slowed the plane and turned on to the correct heading before waking up his colleague.
Neither the airline nor the pilots were named.
