Sleepy EGPN

[2 six 4]

Source: Mail on Sunday

A passenger plane had to circle over Dundee for half
an hour because an Air Traffic Controller overslept.

Dundee Airport control tower was left unmanned and a
replacement worker had to be called in before the aircraft
could touch down. No passengers were on board the Dornier
Fairchild 328 turbo prop.

An airport source said: "They couldn't find the controller
on duty and we later found out that he had actually slept in."

A spokesman for BALPA said: "This is extraordinary. What
would have happened if the plane was low on fuel.?

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

One needs to know the true circumstances but I think the BALPA man needs to understand that a lot of modern aeroplanes are equipped with wireless apparatus. Employing the age old technique of communication the gentleman at the front of the aeroplane could have made contact with some other ground station and indicated his intention to fly elsewhere... so it wasn't going to come to grief!

Actually, something similar occurred at a place I once worked - many, many miles from here and many, many years ago. The entire watch (2) fell asleep... an inbound BOAC flight went through the whole R/T failure bit - believing their radio to be at fault. When they landed the captain visited ATC to apologise only to find 2 blokes snoring. He promptly signed on watch in the ATC Watch Log, requiring some interesting explanations to the SATCO next day!!

[This message has been edited by HEATHROW DIRECTOR (edited 11 December 2000).]

[aluminium persuader]

I seem to remember something similar at PN maybe about 5 years ago. :)

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Once more unto the breach, Dear Friends...