An off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot who was sitting in a jump seat in the cockpit on a commercial flight has been charged with attempted homicide after attempting to shut down the plane's engines mid-flight.
Horizon Air's Embraer E-175 was en route from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco when the incident occurred on Sunday, parent company Alaska Airlines said in a statement. The aircraft, carrying 80 passengers, was diverted to Portland, Oregon, where it landed safely.
According to Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air pilots reported "a credible safety threat associated with an off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot who was travelling seated in the cockpit jump seat".
"The occupant of the jump seat tried unsuccessfully to disrupt the operation of the engines", said the company. "The Horizon captain and co-pilot reacted quickly, engine power was not lost and the crew secured the aircraft without incident".
Alaska Airlines has not identified the individual, but a man named Joseph Emerson (44) was charged Monday by the Multnomah County Sheriff's Department in Portland with 83 counts of attempted homicide, reckless endangerment and endangering an aircraft.
Joseph Emerson, the off-duty pilot accused of trying to shut down the engines on an Alaska Airlines plane mid-flight, told police he was having a “nervous breakdown” and admitted to consuming “magic mushrooms” two days earlier, according to court documents. pic.twitter.com/BcRtBpsFN8
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) October 24, 2023
Live ATC, a website that archives conversations between pilots and air traffic controllers, published an audio recording of the Horizon Air pilot recounting the events. "We got the guy who tried to cut the engines out of the cockpit," he said. "And it doesn't look like he's causing any problems back there now".
"I think he's under control. Other than that, yes, the police need to be there as soon as we land," he added, describing the incident as a "level 4" threat, which involves attempting to compromise in-flight safety.
The incident is currently under investigation. Several airlines allow off-duty pilots to travel seated in the cockpit jump seat, the seat directly behind the pilots.
