Pilots Overshoot Destination Airport by 150 Miles

Their destination was the Minneapolis airport. However, two Northwest Airlines pilots, after failing to make radio contact with ground controllers for more than an hour, overflew their Minneapolis destination by 150 miles before discovering the error and turning around.

Strangely, passengers seemed to have not noticed the error, despite what would seemingly have caused a late landing. The plane landed safely Wednesday evening. No one was hurt.

Flight 188, an a Northwest Airlines Airbus A320, was flying from San Diego to Minneapolis with 144 passengers and five crew. Controllers lost radio contact with the pilots just before 7 PM CDT, when they were at 37,000 feet. The jet flew over the Minneapolis airport just before 8 PM, overshooting it by 150 miles before radio communication was reestablished at 8:14 PM, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

Once the plane overshot the airport, and typical in the post-911 world, the FAA notified the military, which put Air National Guard fighter jets on alert at two locations. However, one radio contact was re-established, the alert was canceled.

The flight crew told authorities they became distracted during an argument over airline policy and lost track of time, as well as their location. Despite this, the FAA is investigating to determine if pilot fatigue might have played a role.

The two pilots have been suspended by Delta Airlines, which acquired Northwest Airlines last year, until an internal investigation is completed. There has been speculation the pilots fell asleep.