What a DOOZY! Air traffic controller at Corsica airport falls asleep, leaving Paris flight hanging

A plane flying from Paris to Corsica could not land on time and was forced to stay in the air for several minutes after the air traffic controller dozed off. France's civil aviation authority revealed on Wednesday that the Air Corsica flight, carrying tourists, was forced to hover over the airport for 18 minutes. The plane was coming from Paris Orly airport and was supposed to land in Ajaccio. It was flying in circles above the Mediterranean Sea for so long that officials considered diverting the plane to Bastia, a port city on the other side of the island. The airport's fire crew had a hard time getting in touch with the air traffic controller, who was asleep. They ultimately contacted the police and were finally able to climb the tower and wake up the sleeping ATC.

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The flight from Paris was an hour late, and the air traffic controller was working alone. While waiting for the plane, he fell asleep. When the flight finally reached the French airport in Ajaccio, the pilot could not land since the lights on the single 2,400-metre runway hadn't been turned on. The pilot had no choice but to stay in the air. Meanwhile, airport staff scrambled to contact the ATC. He was finally woken up, and the flight landed safely. "The intervention of the airport fire department at the control tower revealed that the air traffic controller on duty had fallen asleep at his post," the aviation authority said in a statement. It has opened an investigation into the incident.

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Never handled anything like this, says pilot

Meanwhile, the captain of the plane recounted the strange incident to The Times. He said that he had never handled such a situation in his career of several decades. "We did a little tour. At no time was there any panic. Everyone stayed calm." He added that the passengers were also not worried and instead found the issue funny. Meanwhile, the ATC tested negative for alcohol, but runs the risk of "a possible sanction".