NWA flight overshot Mpls. by 150 miles

[question everything]

Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune

A Northwest Airbus A320 flying from San Diego overshot its Twin Cities destination by about 150 miles on Wednesday, apparently when the crew became distracted, the National Transportation Safety Board said today.

(snip)

The NTSB said Flight 188 was operating without radio contact at about 37,000 feet at about 7 p.m. The flight had 147 passengers and five crew members. It overshot Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport at 7:58 p.m. The plane few over the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport and continued 150 miles northeast into Wisconsin. Air traffic controllers re-established contact 8:14 p.m. The NTSB said the controllers reportedly stated that the crew had become distracted and had overflown Minneapolis-St. Paul, and requested a return to the Twin Cities.

The Federal Administration (FAA) said the FBI and airport police interviewed the crew, who said they "were in a heated discussion over airline policy and they lost situational awareness." The NTSB is scheduling an interview with the crew.

The FAA notified the military, which put Air National Guard fighter jets on alert at two locations. As many as four planes could have been scrambled, but none ever took to the air.


Read more: http://www.startribune.com/local/65619367.html

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Are they out of their mind? That commuter plane that crashed in Upstate New York had the recorder showing the crew talking non-aviation topics.

A later report on the local news station said that the pilot is out of job, for now.