News
Pilot fatigue possible cause of UPS crash: investigators
Feb. 20, 2014, Washington, D.C. - Federal investigators are looking at pilot fatigue, among other issues, as a possible factor in the fatal pre-dawn crash of a UPS cargo jet in Alabama last August.
February 20, 2014 By The Associated Press
The National Transportation Safety Board scheduled a hearing for Thursday on the accident, which killed both pilots.
The pilots' work shift had begun at about 9 p.m. the
previous day in Rockford, Ill., and took them to Peoria and then to
Lexington, Ky. They were finishing their last scheduled leg when the
plane slammed into a hillside just before 5 a.m. while attempting to
land in Birmingham.
Two years ago, the Federal
Aviation Administration issued new rules aimed at ensuring airline
pilots have sufficient rest. But the agency exempted cargo pilots from
the rules, citing cost.
