Northwest Airlines Flight 188
Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport | |
Occupants | 149 |
---|---|
Passengers | 144 |
Crew | 5 |
Fatalities | 0 |
Injuries | 0 |
Survivors | 149 |
Northwest Airlines Flight 188 was a regularly scheduled flight from
Aircraft
The aircraft involved was an Airbus A320-212, registered as N374NW, serial number 1646, being delivered to Northwest Airlines in December 2001. The aircraft was equipped with two CFM International CFM56-5A3 engines.[6][7]
Incident
The Airbus A320 took off from
Per federal regulations, the Denver
Just as the fighter jets were about to scramble, air traffic control at
Investigation
During the investigation, Cheney and Cole told National Transportation Safety Board investigators that they were going over schedules using their laptop computers—a serious breach of piloting fundamentals, as well as a violation of Delta Air Lines policy (Delta had recently merged with Northwest). The pilots denied suggestions from some aviation safety experts that they had fallen asleep.[11]
The pilots claimed that, despite not hearing any radio calls nor seeing any visual notifications, they had not been asleep.[12] In the United States, the FAA prohibits pilots from taking short naps,[13][14] but airlines from other countries allow short naps while outside of U.S. airspace. These airlines include British Airways, Qantas, and Air France.[15][16] The cockpit voice recorder was checked by investigators, but there was only 30 minutes' worth of information.[17] Over an hour's worth of information would have been needed for all of the information of the portion of the flight past Minneapolis to be available.[12]
Findings
On October 27, 2009, the FAA grounded the pilots. The FAA found that Cheney and Cole were out of radio contact with air traffic controllers for more than an hour and a half "while you were on a frolic of your own." It cited the pilots for acting in "total dereliction and disregard" for their duties, and were "disengaged and impervious" to the danger their actions posed to themselves, the passengers and the crew. Among other things, the FAA found that the pilots failed to comply with air traffic control instructions and clearances and failed to monitor the plane's radios. The FAA found that the pilots operated the plane in a careless and reckless manner, and thus showed that they lacked "the degree of care, skill, judgment and responsibility" to hold a pilot's license. The incident and subsequent investigation have led to some changes in the rules for cockpit crew and air traffic controllers.[2][10][18][19]
Another issue of concern was the over an hour long delay from the time air traffic controllers realized the plane was out radio contact until an alert on the Domestic Events Network (DEN) was created and
References
- ^ Ahlers, Mike (March 5, 2010). "Pilots who overflew airport drop attempt to keep licenses". CNN. Retrieved March 3, 2014.
- ^ a b "NTSB Says Northwest Pilots' Distraction led to Overflight of Minneapolis, Notes ATC Shortcomings; Issues Recommendations on ATC Procedures" (Press release). National Transportation Safety Board. March 18, 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
- ^ "Northwest Flight 188 Pilots Will Not Get Their Jobs Back". Aero-News Network. June 17, 2010. Retrieved March 4, 2014.
- ^ "Airline safety flight issues could be mitigated by better user interface". Science Daily. December 16, 2013. Retrieved March 4, 2014.
- S2CID 111356552.
- ^ "Please verify your request | Planespotters.net". www.planespotters.net. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
- ^ "Incident Airbus A320-212 N374NW,". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
- ^ "Northwest Airlines 188 (NWA188) flight track". Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
- ^ a b "FAA releases recordings of wayward jet". CNN. November 27, 2009.
- ^ a b FAA letter revoking Cheney's license
- ^ a b "NTSB: Wayward pilots were working on laptops". NBC News. Associated Press. October 26, 2009.
- ^ a b "Report: Stray jet's pilots were on laptops". CNN. CNN.com. October 27, 2009. Retrieved March 3, 2014.
- ^ "14 CFR § 121.543 - Flight crewmembers at control". Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- ^ "U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration Advisory Circular 120-100: Basics of Aviation Fatigue" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. June 7, 2010. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- ^ "Could pilots soon be napping in the cockpit? (Includes interview)". Digitaljournal.com. October 17, 2009. Retrieved March 3, 2014.
- ^ "After flight mishap, naps seen as helpful". News OK. Associated Press. October 25, 2009. Archived from the original on September 23, 2012. Retrieved March 3, 2014.
- ^ "Cockpit Voice Recorder 12 - Specialist's Factual Report" (PDF). National Transportation Safety Board. December 15, 2009. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
- ^ "Pilots of wayward jet lose licenses". CNN. October 27, 2009.
- ISSN 0362-4331.
- ^ "NORAD out of loop in NWA snafu". ABC News. October 29, 2009.
- ^ "Domestic Events Network (DEN) Reporting Requirements" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration.
External links
- Northwest Airlines flight leads to probe of pilot professionalism
- The inside story of Northwest 188 plus, Congress gets it right, for once: Tough new hiring rules for airlines and pilots
- Analyst of the incident and review of the ANSV Final Report by a commercial aircraft pilot and training captain on YouTube
- National Transportation Safety Board
- Full NTSB docket including:
- Submission of Delta Air Lines To the National Transportation Safety Board
- Submission of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association Regarding the Incident Involving Northwest 188
- Project Information