An Aer Lingus pilot pursuing a claim for whistleblower penalisation has said he and his first officer were placed “under duress” during a safety probe to attribute a navigation incident to human error instead of a “technical difficulty with the aircraft”.
It was after an air traffic control manager formed the view that the Airbus A321neo jet, flying from Munich with 156 passengers and crew aboard, was on course to land at the wrong runway at Dublin Airport on the 8th of June, 2023.
Aer Lingus is contesting statutory complaints brought by the pilot, 53-year-old Declan McCabe, under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014, the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, and the Payment of Wages Act 1997 at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC), following his demotion from captain to first officer.
Airline management concluded Mr McCabe had failed to submit a timely air safety report and gave “inaccurate information” to the national air traffic control authority, Air Nav Ireland, after his aircraft initially failed to pick up a “localiser” beacon on approach to the airport. Mr McCabe’s stance is that the incident was a “non-event” and he decided no report was warranted.
Cross-examining the complainant on Tuesday, Tom Mallon BL, appearing instructed by Arthur Cox, put it to him that an air traffic control station manager had reported: “‘On playback it appears the aircraft was establishing [an approach to] runway 10-R,’” Mr Mallon said – Dublin Airport’s south runway....
When it comes to fan interaction, Marigold “Super Rookie” Seri Yamaoka is more than happy to participate in meet and greets. Yamaoka makes sure she shows her appreciation to her fans in the form o...