Did NWA pilots fall asleep while approaching MSP? NTSB investigating

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The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating an incident Wednesday night where pilots are suspected of falling asleep at the controls while approaching Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, according to the Wall Street Journal. The Airbus A320 apparently overshot the airport by more than 100 miles and had to circle back to land after temporarily losing radio contact with air-traffic controllers.

Yikes. Apparently NWA pilots are trying to go out in style. 

via FlightAware

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The National Transportation Safety Board is currently investigating the incident. The plane was heading to Minneapolis from San Diego. NTSB expects to release more details later today. Initial reports say they believe the crew fell asleep briefly and flew past the airport.

According to the Associated Press, the crew says they were distracted by a heated debate on airline policy and lost track of where they were.

Northwest is in the process of fully integrating with Delta Aitline, which also had a serious mishap earlier this week. A Delta crew flying a 767 from Brazil to Atlanta landed on the taxiway instead of the runway.

Investigators are looking into possible crew fatigue and are reviewing work hours and sleep schedules of employees on the plane.