An NPR news report this afternoon indicated the first officer landed a Continental flight from Brussels to Newark after the captain suffered "an apparent heart attack" and died in the air, over the Atlantic. I found it bizarre that the report also included information that the plane "landed safely" with the first officer and a relief pilot in charge.
A CNN report followed along the same lines: "The airline said the crew on the flight included an additional relief pilot who took the place of the deceased man, and 'the flight continued safely with two pilots at the controls.' The Boeing 777 landed safely at Newark International Airport at 11:49 a.m. ET Thursday, the airline said."
The captain's death is certainly news, but why is it news that the aircraft made it to the ground with no other injuries -- or fatalities? Isn't that what co-pilots/first officers/relief pilots are supposed to do?
During the otherwise-normal flight, only a call for a doctor on board indicated that someone might have become ill. The doctor pronounced the pilot dead, acccording to reports, but passengers were not "informed" of the captain's death, and that flight attendants continued service as usual. Pray tell, what benefit would it be to let a plane full of passengers know that due to his untimely and unfortunate passing, the pilot who took off from Brussels would not be the one landing the aircraft in Newark?
A passenger told CNN, "four or five fire trucks and a whole bunch of medical emergency teams." Maybe I'm channeling the late George Carlin here, but I wonder what good would several fire trucks and even more medical teams could do for a corpse. Wouldn't a hearse have been more appropriate?
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