w*******e 发帖数: 269 | 1 Beijing (CNN) A co-pilot smoking an electronic cigarette in the cockpit of
an Air China flight caused the plane to suddenly drop 6,000 meters (19,600
feet) when he mistakenly turned off its air conditioning system.
A senior official from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC)
told reporters Friday that, without notifying the pilot, the unnamed co-
pilot was trying to turn off air recycling fans to prevent the vapor from
spreading into the passenger cabin.
Instead, he toggled the wrong switches, which were close to his intended
target, leading to a drop in oxygen levels that triggered altitude warnings.
Air China fired the entire flight deck crew and suggested CAAC revoke their
pilot's licenses upon completing its investigation, the country's flag
carrier said Friday night in a statement.
Air China flight CA106, en route from Hong Kong to the northeastern Chinese
city of Dalian, descended from above 10,000 meters (32,800 feet) to below 4,
000 meters (13,100 feet) in less than nine minutes Tuesday shortly after it
reached cruising altitude, according to phone GPS data shared with CNN by a
passenger on board. |