A plane flies for 10 minutes without a pilot… and the co-pilot had fainted

On 17 February, a Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt (Germany) to Seville (Spain) narrowly avoided disaster.

However, the Airbus A321 landed safely. According to an official report published on Friday, the pilot had left the cockpit to use the toilet and the co-pilot, left alone at the controls, suddenly fainted. During this loss of consciousness, he inadvertently touched the flight controls and activated several switches, according to the media outlet La Dépêche. Fortunately, the autopilot and automatic thrust system continued to function, keeping the aircraft on course.

Unable to open the door

After his break, the captain tried several times to re-enter the cockpit using the usual code, but unsuccessfully. The co-pilot, still recovering, nonetheless managed to open the door for him, just before the emergency code would have been activated. The aircraft and its 199 passengers were immediately diverted to the Spanish capital, Madrid. The co-pilot was taken straight to hospital.

(MH with Raphaël Liset - Source: La Dépêche - Illustration: ©Unsplash)