Tag: Pilots

The Takeaway

Revisting the Buffalo Plane Crash, One Year Later

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

The National Transportation Safety Board released its report on what it believed was the cause for Continental Flight 3407's crash in Buffalo nearly one year ago. After a year long investigation, the NTSB concluded the crash was caused by pilot error, and "complacency and confusion that resulted in catastrophe."

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The Takeaway

Cockpit Confidential: Investigating the Northwest Airlines Pilots

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

New information released Monday said that the distracted pilots of Northwest Airlines Flight 188, who overshot their landing strip in Minneapolis by 150 miles before turning around and landing safely, were using their personal laptops with their headphones off. For more, we talk with Patrick Smith, airline expert and author of the "Ask the Pilot" book and online column at Salon.com.

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The Takeaway

NTSB to Investigate Northwest Airlines Flight 188

Monday, October 26, 2009

This week The National Transportation Safety Board will examine cockpit voice recordings and interview the pilots and crew of Northwest Airlines flight 188, which overshot Minneapolis airport and lost contact with air traffic controllers for over an hour last Thursday. The pilots said they were distracted by a heated conversation about airline policy. Officials will be investigating whether the pilots may have dozed off in the cockpit. We speak to Ben Berman, a commercial pilot and former chief of major investigations at the NTSB.

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The Takeaway

Captain 'Sully' on River Landing, Airline Piloting

Monday, October 19, 2009

Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger shot to fame after safely landing a US Airways plane in the Hudson River last January. He's written a new book about the experience, "Highest Duty: My Search for What Really Matters," and talks to us about what went through his head in the seconds before the emergency landing and why he's using his new platform to advocate for other airline pilots.

"Jeff and I only had 208 seconds from the time we hit the birds and we landed.... Part of my message is that the profession of the airline pilot is a very important one and it's hard. It's not easy."
—Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger on his experience landing a US Airways flight on the Hudson River

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