A pair of Indonesian airline pilots are likely facing disciplinary action after they both fell asleep during a flight and let the plane veer off course.
A Batik Air Indonesia flight with 153 passengers onboard had just taken off and reached its cruising altitude of 36,000 feet. Once safely in the air, the pilot asked his second-in-command if he could take a nap as he was tired from their previous flight. The co-pilot took the controls as the captain snoozed, but then got a little sleepy himself and nodded off.
The first pilot eventually woke up and noticed the plane was off-course. He then looked over at his co-pilot and saw he was fast asleep. He immediately woke him up and the two quickly corrected the flight's course. The plane landed safely in Jakarta and no one was hurt. It's unclear how or if the pilots will be disciplined. The co-pilot admitted to be being extra sleepy because he has one-month-old twins who kept him up the night before. (The Washington Post)
Scott's Thoughts:
- Pilots should never be that tired.
- It's a good thing the captain woke up. The plane could have ended up in the Indian Ocean.
- At least they weren't drunk.
- Maybe it's a good idea for a flight attendant to check on the cockpit every so often to make sure there's someone awake flying the plane.
- Isn't there technology that can make alarms if it notices the person flying has their eyes closed? I know I have heard of this in cars. Let's install this in airplanes shall we?