It happened on June 12 on a plane of the Egyptian company Sky Vision , flying from Cairo to Taif, but the controversy still does not subside : the commander died during the flight and the co-pilot took matters into his own hands, managing to land in Jeddah airport, Saudi Arabia , saving the hundred passengers on board.
An affair which therefore ended with a rescue, but which sparked the debate - and criticism - for the choice of the second officer to warn the passengers of the sudden death of the captain : a shocking announcement which triggered panic on board with many, among the hundred transported, who suffered illness.
According to experts, in fact, such episodes are certainly not rare, but actually happen on average once a year .
In his book "Sick Pilots", Antonio Bordoni counted at least 53 cases of commanders dying in flight since 1950 . A number - he added - which could be underestimated because on-board recorders have only been mandatory since the 1960s and many accidents, attributed to technical failures, could be due to the death of the pilots.
(Unioneonline/vl)
