Lawmakers meeting about airline safety Wednesday heard about a government report that described a commercial pilot and his first officer falling asleep at the wheel 60 miles outside from Denver, and careening toward the airport at twice the speed allowed.
A commercial pilot had recently switched schedules to flying three “red eyes” in a row between Denver and Baltimore with only one hour in between flights. On March 4, 2004, during the third late-night flight, the pilot and his first officer were approaching Denver in an Airbus A319 and they were fast asleep.
“LAST 45 MINS OF FLT I FELL ASLEEP AND SO DID THE FO,”
“MISSED ALL CALLS FROM ATC,” the report continues, saying that the plane was supposed to be traveling at less than 290 mph, but they were moving at a clip of about 590 mph.
“I WOKE UP, WHY I DON’T KNOW, AND HEARD FRANTIC CALLS FROM ATC. … I ANSWERED ATC AND ABIDED BY ALL INSTRUCTIONS TO GET DOWN. WOKE FO UP,” the report says, adding that he then followed all the controller’s instructions, “AND LANDED WITH NO FURTHER INCIDENTS.”
Continue at source: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,307019,00.html
Official ASRS Narrative:
HAD BEEN DOING 4 MONTHS OF STAND-UP’S. LATE RPT, FLY TO DFW ARRIVE AT XA30 AND GO TO MOTEL AND REST APPROX 8 HRS. SHOW AT XH00, FLY BACK TO DEN. FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH, HAD A SCHEDULE CHANGE TO ‘RED EYES,’ WHICH CONSISTS OF LEAVING DEN AT XA50, FLY TO BWI AND 1 HR TURN-BACK TO DEN. NO REST, JUST STRAIGHT 7 HRS 55 MINS FLT TO BALTIMORE AND BACK. ON THIS PARTICULAR DAY (MAR/THU/04) AFTER 2 PREVIOUS RED EYES, THIS BEING THIRD RED EYE IN A ROW, LAST 45 MINS OF FLT I FELL ASLEEP AND SO DID THE FO. MISSED ALL CALLS FROM ATC TO MEET XING RESTR AT DANDD INTXN IN THE SE CORRIDOR TO DEN. THE XING RESTR BEING DANDD AT FL190 AND 250 KTS. INSTEAD, WE CROSSED DANDD AT FL350 AND MACH .82. I WOKE UP, WHY I DON’T KNOW, AND HEARD FRANTIC CALLS FROM ATC APPROX 5 DME INSIDE OF DANDD. I ANSWERED ATC AND ABIDED BY ALL INSTRUCTIONS TO GET DOWN. WOKE FO UP, STARTED DOWN TO FL220 AS INSTRUCTED, EXPEDITING TO FL220 AND THEN TO 14000 FT WITH TURNS TO 360 DEGS AND THEN TO 180 DEGS. FINISHED ALL CHKLISTS AND LANDED IN DEN WITH NO FURTHER INCIDENTS. WAS NOT TOLD TO CALL ATC, BUT DID FILE RPT WITH COMPANY. ATTRIBUTE INCIDENT TO PLT FATIGUE, AND HOPEFULLY COMPANY IS IN PROCESS OF CHANGING THESE TRIP PAIRINGS.