Flight QF72: What happens when 'psycho' automation leaves pilots powerless?

By Matt O'Sullivan
Updated May 13 2017 - 9:33am, first published 9:15am
Captain of the QF72 flight, Kevin Sullivan: 'When [systems] fail, they are presenting pilots with situations that are confusing,' he says. Photo: Louie Douvis
Captain of the QF72 flight, Kevin Sullivan: 'When [systems] fail, they are presenting pilots with situations that are confusing,' he says. Photo: Louie Douvis

Returning from the toilet, second officer Ross Hales straps into the right-hand-side seat beside Captain Kevin Sullivan in the Qantas jet's cockpit. "No change," Sullivan tells him in his American accent. He is referring to the Airbus A330-300's autopilot and altitude as it cruises at 37,000 feet above the Indian Ocean on a blue-sky day. 

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