Batik Air plane (Illustration: Facebook).
Indonesia's national aviation safety committee has called for better monitoring of pilot fatigue after an investigation found that both pilots on a commercial airliner fell asleep on board in January.
A preliminary KNKT report said a captain and co-pilot fell asleep simultaneously for about 28 minutes during a Batik Air flight from southeast Sulawesi to the capital Jakarta on January 25.
Indonesia is a vast archipelago but has a poor record of air safety despite its heavy reliance on air transport to connect its thousands of islands.
The incident resulted in a series of navigation errors, but the 153 passengers and four flight attendants on the Airbus A320 were safe during the 2-hour, 35-minute flight.
The report said one of the two pilots did not get enough rest the night before the flight.
About half an hour after takeoff, the captain told the first officer that he was going to take a break.
However, after taking control of the plane, the co-pilot accidentally fell asleep.
"The co-pilot has one-month-old twins. His wife takes care of the children and he helps with housework," the report said.
During the time the two pilots fell asleep, the air traffic control center in Jakarta tried to contact the plane but received no response.
About 28 minutes after the last transmission between the plane and air traffic control, the captain woke up and discovered that the first officer had fallen asleep. By then, the plane had deviated from its flight path.
The captain woke the co-pilot, responded to air traffic control and corrected the flight path. The plane then landed safely.
Investigators did not identify the pilots but said they were all Indonesian, aged 32 and 28.
KNKT called on Batik Air to develop detailed procedures to conduct regular and appropriate cockpit inspections, and to ensure that pilots and cabin crew are adequately rested before their flights.
Batik Air has not commented on the incident.
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