Two Air France pilots broke into a fistfight inside the cockpit over Africa, resulting in the crew having to intervene and an attendant to stop the pilots and misbehave with the pilots for the rest of the pilot to fly inside the cockpit. Filled. Both Air France pilots were under investigation after the incident was reported in June 2022, which prompted French investigators to suspend the pilots after the investigation ended. However, according to aviation officials, the fight did not hinder the flight and it later landed safely. An Air France official said the pilots were suspended after physically fighting in the cockpit on a Geneva-Paris flight.
Switzerland’s La Tribune reported that the pilot and co-pilot had a brawl soon after takeoff, and one after another grabbed each other by their collars. The report said the cabin crew intervened and a crew member took off in the cockpit with the pilots.
The flight continued and landed safely, and the dispute did not affect the rest of the flight, the official said, emphasizing the airline’s commitment to safety. News of the fight came after France’s air investigation agency, the BEA, released a report that said some Air France pilots lacked rigor with regard to procedures during safety incidents.
This focused on a fuel leak on an Air France flight from Brazzaville to Paris in the Republic of the Congo in December 2020, when pilots re-routed the aircraft but did not cut the engine or power to land, as a leak procedure required. it occurs. The plane landed safely in Chad, but a BEA report warned that an engine fire could have occurred.
It noted three similar cases between 2017 and 2022, and said some pilots are acting based on their analysis of the situation rather than on safety protocols. Air France said it was conducting a security audit in response. It pledged to follow the BEA’s recommendations, including allowing pilots to study their flights afterward, and toughening training manuals about sticking to the process.
The airline mentioned that it operates thousands of flights daily and the report mentions only four such security incidents. Air France’s pilot unions have insisted that safety is of paramount importance to all pilots and rescued pilot operations during emergency situations.
The BEA also investigated an incident in April involving an Air France flight from JFK Airport in New York that encountered flight control problems on its way to landing in Paris.
with PTI input