Air India pilots flying passengers from Dubai to Mumbai allegedly fell asleep en route, reports the Times of India. According to the newspaper, the plane overshot Mumbai on autopilot and went halfway to Goa before air traffic control finally woke the pilots. Air India denies it. From AFP:
Air India on Thursday said a plane had overshot its Mumbai destination on June 4 but furiously denied it was because the pilots were sleeping, putting the glitch down to a brief communications breakdown.
“The report is absolutely incorrect, devoid of facts, misleading and irresponsible. It is a figment of imagination,” Air India spokesman Jitender Bhargava told AFP by telephone from Mumbai.
“We have gone through the flight reports of the last 30 days. A plane did cross Mumbai for 15 kilometres because it had lost contact for a few moments. At those speeds 15 kilometres is covered in a very short time.”
Sleeping pilots? (AFP, via Fortean Times)