Senior pilot suspended after caught napping in business class
A senior pilot has been suspended after he was caught taking a nap in business class, while leaving a trainee flying the plane.
United Airlines can breathe a sigh of relief – this time it was a Pakistan International Airlines pilot who was photographed snuggled up in a reclined business class seat shortly after taking off from Islamabad en route to London.
A concerned passenger alerted the senior hostess, claiming that they felt unsafe being 30,000 feet in the air while Captain Amir Akhtar Hashmi was sleeping.
The former Pakistan Air Line Pilots' Association president was reportedly suspended pending an investigation.
Passengers on the flight had some cause for concern given a 2009 Air France flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris stalled when 58-year-old captain Mark Dubois and his first officer were sleeping at the controls.
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The second co-pilot on that flight referred to as the "company baby" panicked and was unable to correct the Airbus 330.
All 228 on board were killed when it plummeted into the Atlantic Ocean.
It is not uncommon for pilot to take short breaks on long-haul flights, however it is usually done so in a small cabin tucked behind the cockpit, out of view of passengers.
Today's top news stories - May 8
