Why did the pilot lock the door...What Happened on Sri Lanka Airlines

Source: Yonhap News

A dispute between pilots broke out on a Sri Lankan state-owned airline plane that was flying, preventing the captain from entering the pilot's cabin.

According to Sri Lanka's Daily Mirror on the 15th local time, Sri Lanka Airlines issued a statement the previous day and said the Civil Aviation Administration, a Sri Lankan aviation regulator, has launched an investigation into the incident on UL607 from Sydney to Colombo, Sri Lanka, on the 21st of last month. "The company is fully cooperating with the authorities."

The incident occurred when the captain and the assistant captain in the control room of the aircraft that were operating argued.

After the plane took off at the time, the bookkeeper asked the captain to use the bathroom.

However, an argument broke out over the issue, and the captain reportedly locked the door of the control room before another pilot came in as the assistant manager went out of the control room to go to the bathroom.

According to the aircraft's standard operating procedures, if the assistant pilot leaves the cockpit during such a long-distance operation, another pilot on standby must enter the cockpit and maintain a two-man system, but the captain blocked it and stayed in the cockpit alone for a while.

Only after the crew came forward and persuaded the captain was the assistant captain to sit back in the cockpit, and the aircraft later arrived at the destination without incident.

Sri Lanka Airlines says it has banned the captain from flying until the results of the investigation are available.

Sri Lanka Airlines is a state-owned airline with a majority stake in the country's government and is suffering from chronic deficits as the country has suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The International Monetary Fund provided a bailout to Sri Lanka last year, calling for a restructuring of Sri Lankan Airlines, which has a large deficit.

In this regard, Sri Lanka Airlines is reportedly currently suffering from a shortage of flight attendants.