How Did A Lufthansa Flight Fly For 10 Minutes Without A Pilot?

A Frankfurt to Seville Lufthansa flight flew without a pilot for almost 10 minutes! The Airbus A321 was carrying 199 passengers and six crew members on February 17, 2024, when the co-pilot of the flight became unconscious. The plane’s captain had left the cockpit to use the restroom when the co-pilot suddenly lost consciousness.

Lufthansa Flight Flew 10 Minutes Without A Pilot

According to Spain’s Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, the Lufthansa plane flew for almost 10 minutes without a pilot in command. The co-pilot became incapacitated alone in the cockpit. Meanwhile, the flight’s captain was outside the cockpit and was unable to re-enter due to the locked cockpit door. According to the Economic Times, he was unable to get back in despite trying several standard and emergency door codes.

For those unfamiliar, cockpit doors are designed to remain locked during flight to prevent unauthorised access. In this incident, however, that safety feature became a significant hurdle. The captain made several attempts to open the door, including using an emergency override code intended to unlock it automatically. A flight attendant also tried to reach the co-pilot via the onboard telephone.

Finally, the door was only opened when the co-pilot partially regained consciousness and managed to unlock it. The captain then re-entered the cockpit and resumed control of the flight.

So, how did the Lufthansa plane continue to fly without a conscious pilot? Thanks to the active autopilot, the plane continued to fly a steady course. Reportedly, the autopilot mode helped prevent any serious accident.

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How Did The Flight Land Safely?

After this troubling incident, the Lufthansa flight to Seville was diverted to Madrid. The captain of the flight was able to land safely and the co-pilot was immediately hospitalised for medical evaluation. As per the latest update, investigators found that the co-pilot had suffered a seizure caused by an undiagnosed neurological condition.

The Spanish Civil Aviation Accident and Incident Investigation Commission revealed that it is difficult to detect such conditions during routine medical checks. They elaborated that unless there are previous symptoms, such issues often go unnoticed. Lufthansa has assured full support in the investigation but hasn’t commented on the issue so far.

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Cover Image Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons