Try rarely sleeping in your own bed a noisy hotel, trying to sleep during the day, throw in a body clock that has lost the plot, meals at odd times and then a long flight overnight in a warm cockpit with lulling white noise whilst heading east towards a bright light that is painful to look at.....just close your eyes, just for a second...just to rest them....whoah..where's that snoring noise coming from.....?
While these may be problems for many airline pilots, I doubt this is the case for pilots flying on Hawaii's Go Airlines. It uses Honolulu as its hub, and only flies between Hawaiian Islands. They don't schedule flights 24/7. I assume these pilots sleep at home every night.
Hawaiian Airline Route Map- Maps Of Hawaii Islands
The Honolulu to Hilo flight about as far an inter-island flight you can make in Hawaii. It was a 45 minute flight, so it is surprising that both pilots fell asleep, and that the flight attendants didn't notice the Big Island passing by.
Sleep apnea is a serious problem and can make people doze off unexpectedly. I am glad the pilot is aware of it now. I hope he starts using a CPAP device to avoid it, as sleep apnea can cause other medical problems by cutting off oxygen.