At noon on Friday, July 29th, a JetSMART Airbus A320 covering the Buenos Aires (Aeroparque) – Cordoba route had to request priority landing due to a crew member suffering a medical condition. The aircraft, with registration LV-IVN, landed safely at Cordoba airport at 13:12 local time.
According to different reports, the commander fainted, which led to the first officer’s priority request for flight WS3266. After landing, the commander was transferred to a health center for recovery and check-up.
Complex situation, minimum risk
A decompensation of any of the members of the cockpit crew that disables them to continue the flight is an undesirable complication, but it does not imply a risk for the continuity of the operation.
Commercial aircraft can be operated by a single pilot and the workload is duly increased if one of the two pilots is unable to operate or assist. The priority landing request helps to simplify the approach to the airport, alleviating the influence of factors external to the existing complex situation in the cockpit.
All airline-qualified pilots should be trained to deal with a situation such as the one that occurred.
This is not the first time that an incident with these characteristics has occurred: in commercial aviation, there are no events in which the incapacitation of one of the members of the crew has resulted in an accident with grave consequences for the integrity of the aircraft or the passengers.
Consulted by Aviacionline, JetSMART Argentina confirmed what happened and stated that the return flight from Cordoba to Buenos Aires will be operated with an alternative crew this afternoon.
«We are attentive to the health of our pilot and are awaiting news from the health professionals who are attending him,» the company added.
