Indonesia will launch an investigation into airline pilots falling asleep mid-flight

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s transport ministry said on Saturday (March 9) it would launch an investigation into local airline Batik Air after two of its pilots recently fell asleep during a flight.

A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) said a pilot and co-pilot were asleep for about 28 minutes during a flight from southeast Sulawesi to the capital Jakarta on January 25.

The incident resulted in several navigation errors, but the Airbus A320’s 153 passengers and four flight attendants survived safely during the two-hour and 35-minute flight.

Air Transport Director General M. Christy Endah Murni said the Ministry of Transport “strongly reprimands” Batik Air over the incident, and calls on airlines to pay more attention to the rest time of their aircrews.

“We will investigate and review night flight operations in Indonesia related to fatigue risk management for Batik Air and all flight operators,” Christie said in a statement.

Batik Air said in a statement on Saturday that it “operates with an adequate comfort policy” and that it is “committed to implementing all safety recommendations”.

The pilots involved in the January 25 incident were temporarily suspended, the statement said.

A spokesman for Lion Air Group, which includes Batik Air, did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for comment.

The KNKT report, seen by AFP on Friday, was uploaded to the agency’s website in late February.

According to reports, one pilot did not get adequate rest the night before the flight.

About half an hour after the aircraft took off, the captain asked his second-in-command for permission to rest for a while, the request was granted.

The report said that after this the co-pilot took command of the plane, but he also unknowingly fell asleep.

“The second-in-command had one-month-old twins. His wife took care of the children and he assisted while he was at home,” the report said.

A few minutes after the last recorded transmission by the co-pilot, the area control center in Jakarta attempted to contact the aircraft. No answer was received to this.

Twenty-eight minutes after the last recorded transmission, the pilot woke up and realized that his co-pilot was asleep and the aircraft was not on the correct flight path.

He immediately woke up his colleague, answered the call from Jakarta and corrected the flight path, the report said.

The plane landed safely after the incident.

Investigators did not identify the pilots, but said they were both Indonesians and aged 32 and 28.

KNKT urged Batik Air to conduct regular cockpit checks and ensure that pilots and cabin crew are well rested before their flights.