Another great development of our favourite machine was when the -400 was designed with flight crew rest area, including bunks and toilet, within the flight deck and not available to any of our customers. If you could train the cabin crew not to slam the door after they cleared away your caviar (Just kidding - a bit), you could maintain a nice quiet environment for the resting crew - allowing them a proper sleep.
Also, if a tactical decision was required when the Captain was sleeping, he could gently be awoken, come into the cockpit from the bunk, receive a full briefing and come to an acceptable 'team solution' - all in his silk pyjamas! Depending on where you were and what the decision was, he could either change into uniform and take over Command or go back to bed.
An example of this requirement for crew to be woken would be the terrible winter snows a few years ago that completely closed UK airports and airspace causing Long Range jets to be denied entry to UK airspace. Cathay aircraft en route returned to Hong Hong from all kinds of distances and I think one of the Speedbirds ended up in Cyprus.
Last edited by Arfur Dent; 8th Feb 2016 at 20:01.
Reason: Sp