Event Summary
On 14 June 2015, an incident occurred at Warsaw Chopin Airport (EPWA) involving a Boeing 787-800. The air traffic controller informed the airport duty officer that the crew of an approaching aircraft requested permission to land on runway 15/33, which was closed for maintenance. The duty officer halted the ongoing work, inspected the runway, and made it available for landing.
Details
After landing, the crew explained that the request stemmed from a desire to perform an automatic landing due to flight fatigue. The captain had undergone simulator training on the nights of 9–10 and 10–11 June. After leaving the hotel at 12:00 local time on 11 June, he traveled for 11 hours to reach home. Subsequently, he conducted scheduled flights on the nights of 12–13 and 13–14 June. Although a 15-hour rest period was provided between the flights, cumulative fatigue accumulated, leading the captain to decide on an automatic landing.
Causes
The investigation determined that the cause of the incident was fatigue of the captain resulting from working several consecutive nights. The fatigue was identified as the reason for the decision to request landing on the closed runway.
Preventive Measures
Following the incident, the operator instructed the manager of Crew Control to analyze the planned rotation and recommended scheduling one night of local rest after simulator training conducted during nighttime hours.
Safety Recommendations
No safety recommendations were formulated by the investigating body.