As much as we may be relieved that two pilots were not asleep at the wheel, we are not comforted to know they missed their destination by 150 miles because they were messing with their laptops.
The pilots’ licenses have been suspended, as they should have been, and probably few Americans would feel much sympathy for the pair if they are fired.
The Northwest Airline pilots, First Officer Richard I. Cole and Capt. Timothy B. Cheney, told the National Transportation Safety Board they took out their computers so that they could review a new scheduling system.
Northwest was taken over by Delta Air Lines last fall, and the two became engrossed in the program. Using their personal computers is a violation of company policy and they ignored air traffic controllers for about 90 minutes.
The pilots’ first responsibility is flying their plane, not discussing work schedules. They can discuss schedules when they are on the ground.
