Off duty LH pilot lands plane

[Hvr]

A German passenger has been hailed a hero after taking over the controls of a plane and helping it land at Dublin airport.

Details have emerged of how the off-duty pilot offered to help the flight crew after the first officer of the Lufthansa Boeing 747 became ill while flying over the Atlantic on Monday.
The flight from Newark to Frankfurt was diverted to Dublin after the co-pilot suffered an incapacitating migraine.


When the cabin crew announced the plane was being diverted, the passenger asked why and then offered to help, pointing out he was a qualified pilot.

The German national helped bring the plane down safely in an emergency landing at the airport in the Irish capital shortly before 6am.


Read more: Lufthansa | Passenger helps land 747 jumbo jet
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Bit misleading to say a passenger landed the plane. Whilst he was a passenger he wouldn't have been anywhere near the coughpit if he wasn't a qualified pilot.

Very sloppy reporting.

 

[NM]

Bit misleading to say a passenger landed the plane. Whilst he was a passenger he wouldn't have been anywhere near the coughpit if he wasn't a qualified pilot.

Very sloppy reporting.

The story I read said the passenger was a Boeing 767 captain and qualified on the 747. It also implied he was not an LH pilot, but said "North American Airlines"

Ladies and gentlemen is there a pilot on board? | News.com.au

Certainly seems to be the type of passenger you want on board in such circumstances.

 

[samh004]

Still must be something they need to strenuously fact check before letting a pax into the coughpit.




 

[markis10]

Still must be something they need to strenuously fact check before letting a pax into the coughpit.




Wouldnt take long to work out if they were not being accurate, just ask them to make a radio call or get them to show their aircraft keys that go in the ignition!

 

[harvyk]

Wouldnt take long to work out if they were not being accurate, just ask them to make a radio call or get them to show their aircraft keys that go in the ignition!

and that's when they pull out the keys to a Cessna.

 

[Must...Fly!]

and that's when they pull out the keys to a Cessna.

Or the laptop and fire up FSX

 

[Fruitcake]

Or the laptop and fire up FSX

Obviously, firing up FSX would be a red flag. But what if they fire up 747-400 PS1?

 

[Boris spatsky]

Why does this get reported as an emergency?? Perfectly safe to land these aircraft by one pilot (not the norm, but i wouldn't call it an emergency).

 

[markis10]

Why does this get reported as an emergency?? Perfectly safe to land these aircraft by one pilot (not the norm, but i wouldn't call it an emergency).

Its an emergency because its a two pilot plane, there is no such thing as approved single pilot operation of a 747 because there is too much going on for one person, having spent 5 hours in a QF 744 doing touch and go's at AVV, the view from the jump seat proved that to me. A few months later I rode the landing in the jump seat at LAX twice, once in a UAL 744 and once in a cactus 737, the difference in workload at a busy airport versus what I saw at AVV was amazing, further proving to me why two pilots are needed, and also reinforcing to me as an ATC why we dont try to talk to pilots on short final.

 

[Boris spatsky]

I disagree Markis - it's an abnormal situation, not an emergency. Would you not prefer a pilot from your company making the radio calls and running the company checklists, than a pilot from another company who doesn't know the company SOP's?

In my previous company, it was trained for in the sim on type initial, and was well explained in the company SOP's. No mention of declaring an emergency, nor did it occur on the one time it happened to me. The captain, of course, could declare an emergency if he wished.

 

[straitman]

I disagree Markis - it's an abnormal situation, not an emergency. Would you not prefer a pilot from your company making the radio calls and running the company checklists, than a pilot from another company who doesn't know the company SOP's?

In my previous company, it was trained for in the sim on type initial, and was well explained in the company SOP's. No mention of declaring an emergency, nor did it occur on the one time it happened to me. The captain, of course, could declare an emergency if he wished.

I probably agree with markis10 on this.

If the extra pilot was a Lufthansa pilot and current on 747 ops then it was not an emergency. Any other combination and it was an emergency and I'm quite sure that would be covered as such in the operations manual.

There are no points for being a hero and it is better to have too many resources available than not enough.

 

[harvyk]

I disagree Markis - it's an abnormal situation, not an emergency. Would you not prefer a pilot from your company making the radio calls and running the company checklists, than a pilot from another company who doesn't know the company SOP's?

In my previous company, it was trained for in the sim on type initial, and was well explained in the company SOP's. No mention of declaring an emergency, nor did it occur on the one time it happened to me. The captain, of course, could declare an emergency if he wished.

I would expect that not knowing the company SOP's would be an overly big problem, because I expect if it was going to be a problem, the off duty pilot would have been no where near the coughpit. No doubt the off duty pilot would be taking direction from the captain, and would be following what ever the captain had said.

 

[Awesom Andy]

Losing your FO would automatically be an emergency, no matter who else you have on board. If there's anyone who can assist, it's a bonus.

 

[Boris spatsky]

As previously stated, different companies have different policies on this. It is not black and white.


Sent from AFF Mobile Edition

 

[markis10]

As previously stated, different companies have different policies on this. It is not black and white.


Sent from AFF Mobile Edition

It also depends on the type being flown and category of operation

 

[AVC]

With the FO incapacitated would it not qualify as a medical emergency?