Two pilots are thought to have fallen asleep and missed their landing during a flight from Sudan to Ethiopia on Monday, commercial aviation news site Aviation Herald reported.
According to the report, the incident occurred on board an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-800 en route from Khartoum to Addis Ababa “when the pilots fell asleep” and “the aircraft went past the top of descent.”
According to reports, the plane was travelling at 37,000 feet on autopilot when it failed to land at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, its intended destination, on August 15.
Despite many tries, air traffic control was unable to contact the crew. Finally, an alarm went off when the plane overshot the runway and continued down the path. The plane then began to descend and landed safely about 25 minutes later.
“We have received a report which indicates Ethiopian flight number ET343 en route from Khartoum to Addis Ababa temporarily lost communication with Addis Ababa Air Traffic Control on August 15 2022,” reads a statement issued by Ethiopian Airlines on Friday.
“The flight later landed safely after communication was restored. The concerned crew have been removed from operation pending further investigation. Appropriate corrective action will be taken based on the outcome of the investigation. Safety has always been and will continue to be our priority,” the statement said.
Alex Macheras, an aviation analyst, has already resorted to Twitter to express his dismay at the “deeply concerning incident,” which he believes was caused by the pilot’s exhaustion.
