Pilot fatigue......oops

[cowpatz]

An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration ET-AOB performing flight ET-343 from Khartoum (Sudan) to Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), was enroute at FL370 when the pilots fell asleep. The aircraft continued past the top of descent maintaining FL370 and continued along the FMC route set up for an approach to runway 25L without descending however. ATC tried to contact the crew numerous times without success. After overflying runway 25L at FL370 the autopilot disconnected, the disconnect wailer woke the crew up who then manoeuvred the aircraft for a safe landing on runway 25L about 25 minutes after overflying the runway at FL370.

In this case its a good thing that the 737 AP disconnects at the missed approach point, as most of the other Boeing's don't.

Flight aware

[Splitpin]

Gawd

[Charl]

SO what would the "other" Boeings have done?

[emfrat]

SO what would the "other" Boeings have done?

The common-sense thing would be to alert for any missed point, intersection, or whatever, in a flightplan. But what sort of hours had the crew been working?

[cowpatz]

SO what would the "other" Boeings have done?

The autopilot would have remained engaged past the missed approach point position on the ILS and it would continue on the last track at 37000 Ft (in this case) until it ran out of fuel.
Latter Boeing models, from the 777 onwards, have a pilot response system. After a specified time, if there has been no pilot input received, such as a moving a knob or switch, it displays a PILOT RESPONSE EICAS message. After a further delay if there still hasn't been any action then it activates the Master caution system. That's enough to get your attention. It is also our company requirement that the Cabin Crew contact the flight deck at least every 30 min (Day or night).

[Charl]

Wonder what happened to this one??

[cowpatz]

Wonder what happened to this one??

They were probably so well rested that they flew it back

[emfrat]

[SUBS17]

An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration ET-AOB performing flight ET-343 from Khartoum (Sudan) to Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), was enroute at FL370 when the pilots fell asleep. The aircraft continued past the top of descent maintaining FL370 and continued along the FMC route set up for an approach to runway 25L without descending however. ATC tried to contact the crew numerous times without success. After overflying runway 25L at FL370 the autopilot disconnected, the disconnect wailer woke the crew up who then manoeuvred the aircraft for a safe landing on runway 25L about 25 minutes after overflying the runway at FL370.

In this case its a good thing that the 737 AP disconnects at the missed approach point, as most of the other Boeing's don't.

Flight aware

The new AUTOPILOT Lands precisely on the Runway but you still need the Pilot to indicate their intent to Land before the AUTOPILOT would go there and land. It can also Taxi and it has Navigation to the Dock or Parking point and it shows up on the HUD and HELMET/GLASSES DISPLAY. There is also going to be a HOLOGRAPHIC INDICATOR for the Pilot and Crew to follow arrows to the Parking point. And it works in all weather, the new AIRLINE PILOT GLASSES are all Weather and have Night Vision modes. Now I'll have to draw it up!
The new AUTOPILOT can AUTOLAND in an emergency.

[Charl]

Huh... Elon Musk has been promising this stuff for years

[SUBS17]

There is a difference and that is how you go about it, it is an INVENTION. Such glasses can already be manufactured. For other people as mentioned to Create such devices they would require the same INVENTION in order to achieve it. So new Pilots Glasses have a HELMET MOUNTED DISPLAY but on glasses, and would feature NIGHT VISION as well as zoom. With these you would see other aircraft even in White out conditions and you can see the runway or a ship that is moving even in White Out conditions. Such information can be projected holographically onto the windows.