Ethiopian Airlines was in the news on Friday after both pilots of its Khartoum-Addis Ababa flight dozed off in the cockpit. The aircraft continued to maintain the assigned cruise level and overflew the destination before safely landing at the airport.
Pilots can and do sleep in the cockpit, but not this way. And they certainly do not routinely miss the landing.
Typically, short distance sectors are manned by two pilots, while long-haul flights can have three or four pilots. One of the two pilots manning the cockpit is allowed to take rest or sleep inside the cockpit by sliding the