Vic: Pilot barely slept day before Emirates near-disaster

AAP General News (Australia)
04-25-2009
Vic: Pilot barely slept day before Emirates near-disaster

MELBOURNE, April 25 AAP - The pilot of an Emirates plane that came close to crashing
at Melbourne Airport with 225 passengers on board had barely slept the previous day.

The pilot had also been instructed to take off at reduced power to save money on fuel,
News Limited newspapers say.

"This is all about the money," a source told News Limited.

Investigators examining the near-catastrophe at Melbourne Airport last month are exploring
whether fatigue was a factor after being told the pilot had barely slept the day before
the flight.

Emirates pilots are permitted to fly a maximum of 100 hours each 28 days and the pilot
was also almost at the legal threshold of the number of hours he was able to fly.

Emirates has issued a statement saying safety was a top priority for the airline.

The two pilots involved in the March 20 accident were forced to resign 48 hours after
they were flown back to Dubai.

AAP md/ldj

KEYWORD: EMIRATES

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