Sleepy NWA pilots?

[LearLove]

http://flightaware.com/live/flight/NWA188

Chippewa Falls, WI (home of Leinenkugels brewery).

and that forzen on the raft guy from Titanic.

 

[aussieflyboy]

Arguing about policy my ***. These guys are going to be really sorry very soon. The NTSB has the tapes and I'm pretty sure we're going to find out there was no conversation going on st ALL. Maybe they were having a heated debate in sign language??

 

[Green Banana]

not if they pressed the red ERASE button.

 

[Richard Gozinya]

Arguing about policy my ***. These guys are going to be really sorry very soon. The NTSB has the tapes and I'm pretty sure we're going to find out there was no conversation going on st ALL. Maybe they were having a heated debate in sign language??

Maybe they were sending each other text messages........

Dick

 

[K.V.]

When they playback the tape I think they'll find one of the quietest "heated discussions" ever.

 

[wmuflyguy]

not if they pressed the red ERASE button.

Yea right. They can still retrieve data off your hard drive even if you "erase" it. That button is just a feel good thing for us pilots.

Now, I'm not sure how much storage the Airbus CVR has. It is at least 30 minutes, but some can hold as much as 2 hours I believe. Not sure how long the return trip lasted once they turned around, so it may have gotten recorded over. Not sure if they can retrieve data once it has been recorded over.

 

[mesaba13]

Since a descent should have begun around 100 miles west of MSP and then they flew at 37000 to the airport and continued 150 miles past the airport, it seems they were not paying too much attention for at least 250 miles. Not to mention that according to the NTSB they were not talking to ATC for well over an hour. Unfortunately, the FAA may not be content with a simple letter in their file on this one.

Obviously, everyone has forgot to check on with ATC, missed a frequency change, or have been given a bad frequency. (one of which is probably where this thing started to go bad) After that I wonder if its another case of an improper range/scale selected on their tubes that initially masked their proximity to MSP. Then at some point they got into their heated debate and just checked out. Like other incidents in aviation, an error chain that keeps compounding

I feel for these guys and realize that they will probably pay a heavy price no matter what the FAA/company punishment is and for that reason I hope we can all learn something from this.

 

[ACL65PILOT]

I would be honest.

 

[wmuflyguy]

I would be honest.

Definitely, the cover up generally generates more backlash than the crime itself would have.

Tell the truth, we can work with you. Lie to us, we will hang you.

 

[LR45JI]

From you Airbus guys/gals: What mode does the AP revert to once you reach the end of your flightplan?

 

[Schwanker]

Sleepy NWA pilots?

http://kstp.com/news/stories/S1205029.shtml?cat=1

No-these guys are on the DAL seniority list!

 

[DieselDragRacer]

This was the lead story on Shepherd Smith's Fox Report tonight at 7pm and it flat out asked were these pilots were asleep?

 

[pilotgolfer]

From you Airbus guys/gals: What mode does the AP revert to once you reach the end of your flightplan?

I think the lateral mode just continues to track the last course it was flying. I've been off the plane for a few years, but I think that is correct.

 

[KarmaPolice]

Definitely, the cover up generally generates more backlash than the crime itself would have.

Tell the truth, we can work with you. Lie to us, we will hang you.

I agree. Honesty is always the best policy with matters like this.

Their story is hard to believe, but the CVR will exonerate them if they're being honest. If, however, they panicked and erased the tapes, they are rolling the dice that the NTSB can't retrieve that information.

How would you explain to management that you had erased the tapes? "We were arguing and there was some unprofessional comments made about the company, and we wanted to keep our private conversation private."

I would have more sympathy for these guys if it had been 3 A.M! But maybe they pushed it up the night before in the Gas Lamp?! (assuming they did fall asleep, which is the conclusion that makes the most sense).

Anybody know how much time an Airbus CVR records, and if the NTSB has ever recovered erased data?

 

[uspilot]

It will go from NAV to Track