Welcome aboard. I’m your captain.. and I’m having a fly kip
Passengers’ shock at sleeping pilot
A plane captain shocked passengers when he stripped off his uniform and went for a sleep in first class an hour into a transatlantic flight.
The incident happened during a seven-hour journey from Newark, New Jersey, to Glasgow.
Concerned passengers feared the United Airlines pilot’s actions posed a safety risk.
A retired police inspector who now works as a security adviser took a photo of the captain after he laid out his uniform and nodded off in bed.
He said: “The captain went to the loo and changed into a T-shirt before going for a sleep in first class.
“When he woke up, he changed back into his uniform and radioed for access back to the cockpit.
“Police officers get a hard time when they are photographed sleeping in a patrol car.
“I don’t think the captain of a f l ight packed with hundreds of people should be in such a vulnerable position.
“He slept for an hour and a half, then the first officer went for a sleep. The flight was about seven hours.
“Surely if pilots are in need of a rest mid-flight, they should do it away from the passengers. I’ve travelled to the US many times and have never witnessed this.”
The incident happened on flight UA161, which lef t Liber t y International Airport at 7.40pm on August 22 and arrived in Glasgow Airport at 7.30am the next day.
The flight was under the control of a three-man cockpit crew.
A cabin crew member for a major airline, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “This is not a procedure I recognise.
“It seems highly unusual for a captain to remove his uniform during a flight.
“It also seems strange that a pilot should have what’s known as a flat rest on a flight that is under 11 hours.
“Usually they would take a spare seat in business class but often pilots will have their rest within the cockpit.
“It ’ s understandable that some passengers would be concerned.”
Aviation expert David Learmount described it as “most unusual”. He said: “It appears as if the crew member is having an organised rest.
“Sometimes airlines operate with an augmented crew – that’s three pilots when two are needed. But they don’t usually do that on a flight from the US east coast to the UK.”
United Airlines said: “On transatlantic flights, pilots are required to take a rest break. This aircraft is operated by a cockpit crew of three and this pilot was on his rest period.”