They Contend Air Traffic Control Rules Were Not Followed During Flight

The two pilots who flew a Northwest Airlines jet about 150 miles beyond its intended destination say ATC bears at least part of the responsibility for the incident. The pilot's responses to an Administrative Law Judge were made on November 24th, but just made public Monday.

In their statement, Captain Timothy B. Cheney, and First Officer Richard I. Cole, said "The air traffic controller(s) did not comply with the requirements of the air traffic control manual and other relevant orders, rules, procedures, policies and practices with respect to Northwest Flight 188, nor coordinate effectively with Northwest dispatch, and such failure was a causal or contributing factor in the incident."

CNN reports the pilots, who are appealing the revocation of their pilot certificates, told the NTSB they were using their laptops in violation of company policy and "lost track of time." They became aware of the situation when a flight attendant asked about the arrival time.

Cheney has logged more than 20,000 hours of flying time, and Cole has more than 11,000. The pilots said during the investigation that there was "a concentrated period of discussion where they did not monitor the airplane or calls" from ATC. Both said they heard conversation on the radio, the report in the investigation said.

As to the role of ATC in the matter, Laura J. Brown, FAA deputy assistant administrator for public affairs, said "Since this is the subject of an ongoing legal process, we can't comment."

FMI: www.faa.gov