Air India Cabin Crew Fly Bangkok-Delhi Plane While Pilots Have A Nap

[seadoo]

Why would they need a 40 minute nap during a flight less than 4 hours

[SeaVisionBurma]

Post about Thai politics has been removed.

[ezzra]

Goodness gracious me.

Jolly good....

[Archie Pelago]

Goodness gracious me.

Jolly good....

What to do?

[scotto]

Odd thought planes now a day could fly and even land without the need for a pilot..?

Maybe the question is why is it so easy to accidently disconnect the auto pilot ?

watching for years on TV.. Air crash investigations, most accidents or a high percent are pilot or co pilot error.

"watching for years on TV"

Coincidentally, that's how so many ThaiVisa posters are able to critique Thai police procedures and investigative technique ... watching many years of The Mod Squad or Charlie's Angels.

You forgot CHIPS and Hawaii five O

[geriatrickid]

The airline related blogs have similar versions of the story and it appears that the flying officer self reported.

However, a word of caution: The Indian press has a "thing" for the Indian aviation sector, especially Air India. There is a possibility that the event has not been accurately reported.

That being said, I refuse to fly Air India, or Jet for that matter because I have no confidence in the airlines. That and my dislike of the Delhi and Mumbai airports as transit hubs. I am always amazed by people that pick these airlines when they have alternatives.

[Card]

The pilots realized the auto-pilot had been turned off in their sleep?

The vertical drop of 10,000 meters woke them up!

[asiamaster]

Reminds me of that joke whereby a monkey is the only survivor of a plane crash. The smart monkey is able to communicate in sign language so he is interrogated. When asked what the pilot and co pilot were doing before the plane crashed the monkey makes copulating movements. When asked what the monkey was doing he indicates that he was flying the plane...

[candypants]

you can certainly tell a joke.

[Credo]

I have always said that the world would be a much better place if everyone took a nap everyday. I believe in this instance, however, I will have to amend that.

No problem with them taking a nap, but maybe one at a time?

[stevehaigh]

was it anything like this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8JSt_xXs1g

[T_Dog]

Here is another angle on the event. Unreal.

http://m.timesofindia.com/india/Pilots-sleep-as-flight-attendant-turns-off-autopilot-on-Bangkok-Delhi-flight/articleshow/19860300.cms

[theajarn]

I think the while airline should be suspended after this.

[rametindallas]

Odd thought planes now a day could fly and even land without the need for a pilot..?

Maybe the question is why is it so easy to accidently disconnect the auto pilot ?

watching for years on TV.. Air crash investigations, most accidents or a high percent are pilot or co pilot error.

"watching for years on TV"

Coincidentally, that's how so many ThaiVisa posters are able to critique Thai police procedures and investigative technique ... watching many years of The Mod Squad or Charlie's Angels.

You forgot CHIPS and Hawaii five O

I think 'Yes, Minister/Yes, Prime Minister'

[GentlemanJim]

Why would they need a 40 minute nap during a flight less than 4 hours

They were still drunk from the layover in Bangkok

[Songhua]

Here is another angle on the event. Unreal.

http://m.timesofindia.com/india/Pilots-sleep-as-flight-attendant-turns-off-autopilot-on-Bangkok-Delhi-flight/articleshow/19860300.cms

How can you 'accidentally' turn off the autopilot? Weren't they at least told NOT to touch anything?

Anyhow, whilst believable, this story is hard to believe. More likely the crew were up to a bit of mischief and someone's arse hit the panel.

[scorecard]

The airline related blogs have similar versions of the story and it appears that the flying officer self reported.

However, a word of caution: The Indian press has a "thing" for the Indian aviation sector, especially Air India. There is a possibility that the event has not been accurately reported.

That being said, I refuse to fly Air India, or Jet for that matter because I have no confidence in the airlines. That and my dislike of the Delhi and Mumbai airports as transit hubs. I am always amazed by people that pick these airlines when they have alternatives.

Well I would agree with g'kid on several points:

- The Indian press love a 'scandal' and often add extra flavor, although in this

case there seems to be solid evidence of totally unprofessional and totally unacceptable behavior by the pilots.

- Both airports mentioned, Delhi and Mumbai, are a nightmare, with little help for lost or first time visitors to these airports as a transit point. Courtesy and politeness close to absent.

- I flew Air India from Singapore to Delhi many years ago. Check-in left much to be desired, including lack of listening or politeness and the cabin crew were very unhelpful and simply arrogant, with 'cannot' the 'word of the day'. Never again.

But here's another thought:

- I find it a bit difficult to believe that this incident is a first / is a once only.

Edited May 4, 2013 by scorecard

[EyesWideOpen]

Note to self: Only fly on first world airlines... This story is simply beyond belief.

[saakura]

From pprune, slightly more credible, but still scary:-

The inside dope. F/o on toilet break. As per SOP one C/C called in but invited to take P2 seat. Shortly after second C/c walks in , incredibly offered the P1 seat. Capt standing and teaching them how to fly a A-321 at 33000 ft. F/O comes back from toilet and all resume normal duties.

Insiders say the F/O reported the matter to Flight Safety on arrival at DEL.

Capt Soni and the two c/c are under suspension.

Thanks for the inside info and this scenario is more probable than the initial story. It was commendable of the f/o to have reported the matter on arrival. Shows that the training is good and junior staff are not afraid to report safety lapses, even if it incriminates their boss.

[bri1guy]

Both the pilots were napping?? Maybe they were out late the night before drinking too, its only a 5-6 hr flight if one pilot it wouldn't be sure a issue but both of them & leaving a flight attendant. They should be fired & charged with reckless endangerment or worse..

[peterbkk9]

This isolated incident is bad image for the airline; which is sad because other AI pilots are certainly very professional.

I flew Air India to Paris last month and was very satisfied. And will fly again.

Edited May 4, 2013 by peterbkk9

[hellodolly]

"“due to distraction, the co-pilot touched the auto pilot disconnect button momentarily. But the same was connected back.”"

auto pilot disengage switch requires pulling up and out to disengage, not just hitting a button

With all the flight crew in the cabin I wonder what the distraction could have been.

Any chance he had a cigarette after the distraction.

Also what is this momentary I thought it was after a 40 minute nap, Sounds like the reporter and pilots are in the same class

[hellodolly]

Why would they need a 40 minute nap during a flight less than 4 hours

Don"t really know but there has been many a morning I would like to have had a 40 minute nap.

[spectrumisgreen]

Absolute rubbish to even suggest that BOTH pilots left the cockpit to take a nap. Overcrowding a cockpit by cabin crew does happen, and not just at Air India . I don't believe a word of this.

I tend to agree and why would cabin crew enter the vacant cockpit (or was the navigator still present), even locate the autopilot button and then shut it off. Or was this payback as a sense of being pissed off at sleeping pilots. Too many questions at this point to believe the stupidity of the act. Similarly why suspend the cabin crew? They 'appear' to have got the pilots back in the chair.

Everyone involved, crew wise, should be suspended, until it's 'sorted'! And seems to me that the cabin crew didn't 'locate' the auto-pilot or they wouldn't have turned it off, knowing what it was.. maybe even 'larking', suddenly in charge of a plane they thought was 'flying itself'.. just like the kids of the Russian Captain were allowed to do some years back, when the boy pushing the controls to one side for over 30 seconds automatically disengaged the auto-pilot and no-one realised until too late!!! Sadly everyone on board that flight were killed, so this incident, with clearly similar potential for such tragic consequences turned out fortuitous in the extreme that it didn't result otherwise than it did!!! As for your statement, 'Too many questions to believe the stupidity of the act'?.. sorry but that is ZERO basis for not believing the lengths to which human error AND stupidity can extend (example as per aforementioned)!!! In fact there'd be very few accidents, air, road or anywhere else if it weren't for such stupidity and, basically, the abject failure of too many to just do the normal, sensible, smart thing, or like in this case.. the job you were trained to do, man!!! ('absolute rubbish that both pilots would leave the cockpit to take a nap'? .. obviously Carib is ex or current airline or such.. sticking by colleagues across the sea?.. because regardless of the still to be properly established events of this incident, such things do and have happened with terrifying regularity - we can only hope to truly learn from such incidents - and keep our fingers crossed!!? - in regard to the future!!! Simple, if disturbing, FACT!)

[jacko45k]

You would think they could take 40 minute naps separately wouldn't you?

I wonder if they walked into the Biz Class Cabin holding hands?

I am presuming the cabin was empty, and fortunately so as there was nobody free to answer the call button.

[DiNiro]

This isolated incident is bad image for the airline; which is sad because other AI pilots are certainly very professional.

I flew Air India to Paris last month and was very satisfied. And will fly again.

Did they let you fly it a bit?

[thomash]

Not surprising as a few years ago there was a big scandal in India over pilots not being trained properly as they had bribed people to get their pilot licenses. It had been going on for awhile but they found it out when they investigated an Air India pilot who landed a plane nose first!

[scorecard]

This isolated incident is bad image for the airline; which is sad because other AI pilots are certainly very professional.

I flew Air India to Paris last month and was very satisfied. And will fly again.

What do you mean by satisfied? Punctual take off and landing times? Food? Wines? 5 star waiter service? All are possible even though the aircraft might be on auto pilot with a hostess keeping the captains seat warm whilst he's sitting in business class asleep.

[Arkady]

A reminder not to fly on Air India.

[Pimay1]

Not surprising as a few years ago there was a big scandal in India over pilots not being trained properly as they had bribed people to get their pilot licenses. It had been going on for awhile but they found it out when they investigated an Air India pilot who landed a plane nose first!

Right you are. Link below.

http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/fake-pilots-nosefirst-landing-unravels-fullblown-scandal-20110324-1c87d.html