Two pilots were said to have fallen asleep and missed their landing during a flight from Sudan to Ethiopia on Monday, according to a report by commercial aviation news site Aviation Herald.
This occured on board when an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-800 en route from Khartoum to Addis Ababa, the report said:
“when the pilots fell asleep” and “the aircraft continued past the top of descent.”
Information given by the website indicates that the aircraft was cruising at 37,000 feet on autopilot when it failed to descend at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, which is its scheduled destination, on August 15.
Apparently air traffic control was unable to reach the crew despite making several attempts at contact.
However, an alarm was triggered when the plane overshot the runway and continued along the route.
Subsequently the aircraft began to descend, landing safely around 25 minutes later.
Also, Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) data shows the aircraft overflying the runway, before beginning its descent and maneuvering for another approach
“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 15 August 2022,” reads a statement issued by Ethiopian Airlines on Friday.
“The flight later landed safely after communication was restored.
The 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 first priority,” the statement said.