Appealing the Federal Aviation Administration’s revocation of their pilots’ licenses, Northwest Airlines pilots Capt. Timothy Cheney, 54, of Gig Harbor, Wash., and First Officer Richard Cole, 54, of Salem, Ore., say air traffic controllers didn’t follow FAA rules and practices and didn’t coordinate effectively with Northwest dispatchers.
On Oct. 21, their out-of-contact plane carried 144 passengers more than 100 miles past their Minneapolis destination. Over Wisconsin, contact was reestablished between the pilots and ATC. Both pilots have extensive flying experience and told investigators they had had no previous incidents or violations. Cheney was hired by Northwest in 1985 and had about 20,000 hours of flying time, about half of it in the A320. Cole had about 11,000 hours of flight time, including 5,000 hours in the A320.
In the interim, several shift changes occurred with off duty controllers failing to inform incoming controller that the plane was out of radio contact.
Aeroflot flight SU-232 had to return and make an emergency landing at Sheremetyevo International Airport, Russia, on January 25th.
British Airways flight BA-232 made an emergency landing at Berlin Tegel Airport, Germany, on November 16th.
IndiGo flight 6E-743 had to reject takeoff from Hyderabad, India, on October 9th.