A passenger aircraft operating a flight from Iceland to Portugal was forced to make an emergency landing after it was discovered that both pilots were absent from the cockpit during the flight. The incident occurred on March 11 but was only recently disclosed, reports the Baltimore Chronicle, citing Bild.
Reports state that the Play airline aircraft departed from Reykjavík en route to Lisbon. During the flight, one of the pilots temporarily left the cockpit while the other fell asleep. As a result, the aircraft was left without any pilot in control at a critical moment.
When the co-pilot returned, he found his colleague unconscious. Initially, the crew decided to continue the journey, but later opted for an emergency landing in Porto.
It has been confirmed that the captain did not report for duty that day, and the remaining pilot fell asleep from fatigue. The airline has launched an internal investigation. There were no injuries reported, but the incident raised serious concerns among regulators and passengers.
Play representatives stated that they are currently reviewing crew rest policies and confirmed full cooperation with aviation authorities to clarify all circumstances of the case.
Earlier we wrote that UK launches first hydrogen-electric passenger flights.