Lufthansa flight left pilotless for 10 minutes after copilot faints

According to CNN, the captain had briefly left the flight deck to use the lavatory when the incident occurred during a flight from Frankfurt to Seville, Spain, on February 17, 2024, citing a report from Spain’s Civil Aviation Accident and Incident Investigation Commission (CIAIAC).

At the time, the Airbus A321 was carrying 199 passengers and six crew members, the report stated.

The aircraft continued to fly in a stable manner as the autopilot was engaged, however, the report noted that the co-pilot unintentionally manipulated some controls. Audio recordings captured sounds consistent with the co-pilot’s “sudden and severe incapacitation” during this period.

An air traffic controller made three unsuccessful attempts to contact the co-pilot.

The report detailed how the captain returned from the lavatory and tried to access the cockpit using the standard entry code, which triggers a chime inside. He attempted this five times, and a cabin crew member also made an intercom call to the flight deck. 

When no response was received, the captain used an emergency code to gain entry and resumed control of the aircraft.

Lufthansa informed German news agency dpa that it was aware of the CIAIAC’s investigation report, and that its own flight safety department had conducted an internal review, according to the Associated Press. The company didn’t disclose its results, dpa said.

The captain decided to divert the flight to Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport, where the aircraft landed approximately 20 minutes later. Upon arrival, the co-pilot was taken to hospital, where he remained for several hours.

The investigation concluded that the co-pilot's incapacitation was caused by a previously undiagnosed neurological condition that had not been detected during his routine aviation medical examinations. As a result, his medical certificate has been suspended.

The Spanish authority described the incident as an “extraordinary circumstance” and noted that captains are trained to handle situations involving the incapacitation of a fellow pilot.