Posts Tagged ‘ Airplane ’

Don’t Just Blame The Laptop Pilots

October 28th, 2009. By Hunter West

So everybody is up in arms over the Northwest Airlines flight that overshot Minneapolis airport last week because the pilots were busy with their laptops. Monday night Jay Leno had a field day, suggesting that when two guys are bored, what do they do for fun? Bring out the laptops and surf for…well, you know what comes next. 

The pilots are suspended, as they should be. The public is outraged, as it should be. The outcome could have been far, far worse.  

But let’s look at it another way. There were some things that went right. There was no alcohol abuse. And the pilots weren’t tired. There was a 17-hour break for the two men between flights, which means they were well rested. 

Too many pilots because of fatigue, or illness have made too many deadly errors.

So let’s be thankful for that. 

True, we should not allow the focus to be removed from two experienced pilots who should have known better. The New York Times reported October 27th that there were 31,000 hours of flying time between the two men. That kind of lapse in judgment, by two experienced pilots with the lives of 144 people (not to mention flight crew) in their control cannot be discounted. The New York Times quoted Robert Mann Jr., a veteran industry analyst, as saying the actions of Captain Timothy B. Cheney and First Officer Richard I. Cole, were “inexcusable.”  Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Airplane, Delta, Northwest Airlines, Pilot Error
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