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Pilots May Have Dozed Off Before Landing

Feds open investigation after plane overshoots airport by 150 miles

By Nick McMaster, Newser Staff

Posted Oct 22, 2009 3:47 PM CDT

(Newser) – Travel regulators suspect the pilots of a Northwest Airlines flight fell asleep in the cockpit yesterday. First clue: Controllers lost contact with the plane for more than an hour as it overshot its destination by 150 miles. The jet, en route from San Diego with... Read full story »

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Northwest Airlines • airport • pilot • pilot fatigue • nap • National Transportation Safety Board

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Cockpit Recorder No Help in Northwest Flight Probe

Device captures just half an hour; record of 78-minute gap lost

(NEWSER) - Because the aircraft has an old cockpit voice recorder, the world may never know why the pilots of Northwest Flight 188 lost contact with ground control for 78 minutes. The recorder on the Airbus A320 has a maximum memory of 30 minutes, after which it tapes over itself. So investigators can listen only to the last half-hour of the flight—after the pilots has re-established contact with air traffic controllers and gotten back on course. More»

Riskiest Part of Flight Might Now Be on Ground

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(NEWSER) - "America's skies are the safest they have ever been," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told reporters this week, and the stats back him up: Deaths from accidents in US commercial aviation have plummeted over the last 15 years, with none registered at all in 2011. Aviation officials say they are now turning their attention toward somewhere potentially much deadlier than the skies for commercial aircraft: the ground, and specifically, the runway. More»

Co-Pilot Blames Captain for Missing Airport

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(NEWSER) - The battle between the two Northwest Airlines pilots who overshot their airport by over an hour is getting ugly. Co-pilot Richard Cole is insisting captain Tim Cheney is primarily responsible for the blunder. Cole says he deserves less punishment because a co-pilot should be able to trust the captain. The pilots have filed separate legal appeals to have their pilot’s licenses reinstated. More»

FAA Admits Flubs on Wandering Northwest Flight

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(NEWSER) - The FAA should have taken more decisive action on the Northwest Airlines flight that fell out of communication with ground control for 77 minutes last month, officials acknowledged today. While the plane was out of contact, air-traffic controllers changed shifts and failed to warn their replacements about the runaway plane. “We could have done better,” said FAA administrator Randy Babbitt. More»

FAA Revokes Northwest Pilots' Licenses

Distracted duo have 10 days to appeal

(NEWSER) - The distracted pilots of Northwest Airlines Flight 188 are no longer pilots: the FAA today announced it has revoked the licenses of Timothy Cheney, 53, and Richard Cole, 54, for the incident last week in which the pair overshot their destination airport by 150 miles. The pilots, who attributed the gaffe to being on their laptops, have 10 days to appeal. More»

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Pilots May Have Dozed Off Before Landing

Feds open investigation after plane overshoots airport by 150 miles

Northwest Airlines • airport • pilot • pilot fatigue • nap • National Transportation Safety Board

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More Newser Stories

Cockpit Recorder No Help in Northwest Flight Probe

Device captures just half an hour; record of 78-minute gap lost

Riskiest Part of Flight Might Now Be on Ground

With skies safe, officials turn their attention to 'surface threats' on runways

Co-Pilot Blames Captain for Missing Airport

Airmen fight to get back their licenses

FAA Admits Flubs on Wandering Northwest Flight

Miscommunication marked regulator's response to stray airliner

FAA Revokes Northwest Pilots' Licenses

Distracted duo have 10 days to appeal

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