Flight Instructor Dies Midflight, Co-Pilot Thought He Was 'Pretending To Take A Nap'

A flight instructor died after suffering a cardiac arrest midflight in England in June 2022, but his co-pilot thought he was joking around and pretending to be asleep.

A recently published safety report on the incident stated that the pilot thought the instructor was fooling around as the duo flew a circuit above near Blackpool Airport in Lancashire, England, on June 29, 2022. Both were not named in the report.

The pilot only realized that the instructor had died after landing on the runway with the man slumped on his shoulder.

The qualified pilot reportedly asked the instructor to join him aboard the four-person Piper PA-28 for safety reasons during windy conditions, which was above his personal limit to fly alone, according to the U.K.'s Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) report.

"The pilot recalled that during the taxi they were talking normally," the report stated. "He recalled telling the instructor he would keep the aircraft into wind for the power checks and the instructor replying, 'Looks good, there is nothing behind you.' The pilot did not recall the instructor saying anything else after this point."

Shortly after takeoff, the pilot noticed that the instructor's head rolled back.

"The pilot knew the instructor well and thought he was just pretending to take a nap whilst the pilot flew the circuit, so he did not think anything was wrong at this stage," the report added.

Moments later, when the plane turned around, the instructor slumped over with
his head resting on the pilot's shoulder. Despite this action, the pilot still thought the instructor was playing a joke on him.

Then, after landing safely with the instructor still resting on his shoulder, unresponsive, the pilot realized something was not right. He immediately alerted airport emergency services, who were reportedly unable to revive the instructor.

The instructor was said to be in good shape and spirits before his final flight.

"People who had spoken to him on the morning of the incident said he was his normal cheerful self and there were no indications that he was feeling unwell," the AAIB report said. "The three people who had flown with him for the trial lesson just prior to the incident flight said he seemed well and nothing abnormal had occurred."

His post-mortem exam showed that his arteries were clogged with fat and that a blood clot was found in one of his arteries, the New York Post reported.

The medical department of the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority concluded that "From the evidence provided, it is likely the individual suffered a cardiac arrest as the aircraft took off." The instructor was known to suffer from high blood pressure, but it was within regulatory limits.

"No tests or assessment can give a 100% reliable detection of cardiac issues" and "a balance needs to be struck between minimizing the risk to flight safety and providing fair and reasonable medical assessment of individuals," added the AAIB. "The rarity of accidents cause by cardiac events in flight suggests this balance is currently about right."