An Air Canada flight from Toronto to St. John’s (Newfoundland) operated by an Airbus A220-300 encountered trouble when the primary officer became incapacitated. The June seventh incident didn’t lead to a diversion and a secure landing was achieved with assistance from a special passenger.
Incident details
On June seventh, Air Canada flight AC692 took off from Toronto’s Pearson International Airport (YYZ) at 17:58. This departure was just over an hour late because the scheduled departure time was 16:50. Operated by an Airbus A220-300 registered C-GJXY, the aircraft was headed for St. John’s with 125 passengers and 6 crew.
Photo: FlightRadar24.com
As reported by The Aviation Herald, the primary officer of the aircraft became incapacitated 77 minutes into the flight. The cause for incapacitation was not specified. Thankfully, a deadheading captain assumed the duties of the primary officer, and the A220 continued to its destination to perform a secure landing about 90 minutes later.
“Through the flight, the First Officer became incapacitated. A deadheading Captain assumed the crew members duties and the aircraft landed without further incident. Emergency Medical Services met the aircraft on the gate upon arrival.” -Canadian TSB
What’s deadheading?
While deadheading means the removal of fading or dead flowers from plants within the horticultural world, it has a totally different meaning for aviation. Indeed, deadheading within the aviation world refers back to the practice of positioning company staff in the proper place to start their duties, with these employees traveling as regular passengers.
As noted by Aero Corner, deadheading will involve blocking specific seats on regular passenger flights for such crew members. These airline employees may travel in uniform, perhaps during a decent connection, but they can also wear civilian attire.
Photo: Air Canada
Aero Corner also highlights the main safety good thing about deadheading, saying:
“…in the event you are deadheading as a pilot, it’s also possible that you’re going to get asked to assist in case considered one of the lively pilots gets incapacitated. Even in the event you shouldn’t have the rating on that specific aircraft type, you would still be considered the perfect choice to assist with radio communication, for instance.”
While rare, the incapacitation of crew members has already occurred several times this yr. And, in several cases, trained pilots traveling as passengers have been in a position to step in to meet the duties of incapacitated individuals. In March, we saw the primary officer of an Air Transat A321 develop into incapacitated. Nonetheless, a second officer was traveling onboard and was able to switch the primary officer.
Days before the Air Transat incident, a Southwest Airlines captain had fallen in poor health and was unable to perform their duties. On this case, one other pilot, traveling as a passenger, was available to step in. The person was an off-duty, fully-licensed pilot for a special airline.
What do you’re thinking that of this incident? Does this further discredit airline or aircraft manufacturer intentions for single pilot operations? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment!