Feds interview crew of plane that overshot airport

posted: 29 DAYS 21 HOURS AGO

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MINNEAPOLIS -Federal investigators are interviewing the crew of the Northwest Airlines flight that overshot the Minneapolis airport by 150 miles.

National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Keith Holloway says investigators will interview the pilot and co-pilot in person on Sunday in Minneapolis. He would not provide additional details, but did say the NTSB will not comment on the substance of the interviews until Monday at the earliest.

Northwest Airlines is cooperating and doing its own internal investigation, says Chris Kelly, a spokesman for Northwest Airlines' parent company, Delta Air Lines Inc.

Air traffic controllers tried for more than an hour Wednesday night to contact the Minneapolis-bound flight, which later turned around and landed safely. First officer Richard Cole has said he and the captain were not sleeping or arguing in the cockpit, but hasn't explained their lapse in response and the detour. The Wall Street Journal reported on their Web site Sunday that the pilots planned to repeat their story to safety investigators during Sunday's interview.

2009-10-26 09:02:52