NTSB Faults Crew Distraction and ATC Procedures in Overflight of NWA Flight 188
The NTSB ruled that pilot distraction was the cause of last fall’s overflight of its destination airport by a Northwest Airlines flight and the crew’s fail
The NTSB ruled that pilot distraction was the cause of last fall’s overflight of its destination airport by a Northwest Airlines flight and the crew’s failure to maintain radio communications. The Safety Board also noted some deficiencies in air traffic control procedures, which it believed contributed to the duration of the event.
NWA Flight 188 was out of contact with air traffic control for more than one hour and 17 minutes on October 21 and had flown through several air traffic control sectors without replying to any radio transmissions from air traffic controllers. The Airbus A320 had missed its destination, Minneapolis, by more than 100 miles before communication with the flight crew was reestablished.
