Air Corsica Flight Circled Ajaccio Airport In Corsica For Nearly Hour As ATC Staffer Falls Asleep

18th September 2025 at 5:10 PM

2 minutes read

A flight full of passengers was left circling the skies over Corsica for nearly an hour after an air traffic controller at Ajaccio's Napoleon Bonaparte Airport fell asleep during the night shift.

New Delhi : A flight full of passengers was left circling the skies over Corsica for nearly an hour after an air traffic controller at Ajaccio’s Napoleon Bonaparte Airport fell asleep during the night shift. Shortly after midnight on Tuesday, an Air Corsica Airbus A320 began its descent toward the airport in Ajaccio, the capital of the French Mediterranean island, Corsica, but received no response from the airport’s control tower.

The passenger plane with tourists was forced to fly around in circles above the Mediterranean Sea for “18 minutes”, the UK’s Daily Mail reported. France’s civil aviation authority also confirmed the incident on Wednesday. The aircraft, which was still in contact with regional approach controllers, began preparations for a possible diversion to Bastia, a port city on the opposite side of the island.

Airport fire crews were dispatched to the control tower to investigate the blackout. When banging on the door failed to get a response, staff contacted local police and eventually gained access to the tower. They found the controller asleep at his desk, The Times reported. Once awakened, he quickly turned on the runway lights and cleared the flight for landing. The aircraft touched down safely.

The island newspaper, just one controller was on duty awaiting the delayed Paris flight, and the island’s lone 2,400-metre runway was dark. In a career of several decades, I have never had to handle such a situation. We did a little tour. At no time was there any panic. Everyone stayed calm,” The Times quoted the pilot as saying, who was not named.

The controller was tested for alcohol and drugs and returned negative results. Though no immediate disciplinary action was taken, authorities said “a possible sanction is under consideration”. The authority has said that it has opened an investigation into the “unusual situation”, according to a Northern Virginia-based news outlet, InsideNoVA. Ajaccio airport, which sees over 50 commercial flights daily, declined to comment on the incident.

As The Times noted, French controllers, who are civil servants, have repeatedly gone on strike in recent years, citing understaffing and overwhelming workloads. Despite earning salaries that can reach 120,000 (approximately Rs 1.23 crore) a year and benefiting from early retirement options, controllers have warned that working conditions are becoming “unsustainable”.