At 30,000 feet, a pilot reportedly fainted on a Jet2 flight from the UK to Turkey. Flight LS1239 was traveling from Birmingham, England, to Antalya, Turkey, when one of the pilots fainted. The second pilot declared an emergency and safely landed the plane in Thessaloniki, Greece. The pilot fainted shortly after the flight experienced moderate turbulence. All members of the flight crew and passengers onboard were reported safe, and the deviation was reported by the airline to be a precautionary measure taken by the pilots. A replacement flight crew was flown to Thessaloniki to continue the flight to Antalya. Passengers were delayed by over eight hours and were given meal vouchers while waiting at the airport.
Medical scare
On August 23rd, a pilot reportedly fainted in the cockpit on a Jet2 flight traveling from Birmingham, England (BHX) to Antalya, Turkey (AYT). The incident occurred during the cruise portion of the flight at flight level 300. The aircraft had just experienced moderate turbulence before the incident. The second pilot declared an emergency and landed at Thessaloniki, Greece (SKG). All passengers and crew were accounted for on the ground. The pilot who fainted has been reported safe. The airline stated that a pilot was feeling unwell, so the co-pilot diverted as a precautionary measure. The flight crew was met by emergency medical personnel at the airport.
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Following the incident, a second flight crew was flown to SKG to continue the flight to AYT. Despite the prompt response of the airline, passengers were delayed for over eight hours. Each passenger received a total of four meal vouchers while in the airport. The airline did not reimburse passengers for the flight as Jet2's reimbursement policy outlines explicitly that it does not compensate for delays caused by medical emergencies. A spokesperson for the airline reported,
"Flight LS1239 from Birmingham to Antalya diverted to Thessaloniki Airport as a precautionary measure on Tuesday (August 23) due to one of the pilots feeling unwell. A replacement crew were flown to Thessaloniki so that we could get customers on their way to Antalya that same evening.
"We communicated this to our customers as soon as possible, and our teams worked extremely hard to look after everyone. We would like to apologise to anyone affected by this unforeseen delay."
Drained pilots
As the world grapples with a growing pilot shortage, the tolerable strain placed on pilots is being questioned. Pilots are required to work longer, more complicated hours around the globe. Airlines must stretch their pilots thin to keep operations flowing steadily. This has proven to be draining on pilots and increases the likelihood of delays and cancelations. Airlines, unions, and government agencies alike have been looking for ways to improve the lifestyle of pilots to promote healthier and more prepared flight crews.
In recent months the industry has seen multiple cases of pilots being overworked and exhausted while performing their duties. Last week an Ethiopian Airlines flight overflew the destination airport because both pilots had fallen asleep. The pilots were awoken by an alarm in the cockpit and managed to make a safe landing. Incidents such as this are the reason various groups are investigating this problem.
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Source: Business Insider