
The off-duty pilot who is accused of attempting to crash an Alaska Airlines passenger jet allegedly tried to turn off the engines “by engaging the Engine Fire Handle,” the airline claims.
Each engine has a T-valve handle that, when fully extended, closes a valve in the wing to cut off fuel to the engine as part of the aircraft’s fire suppression system, according to Alaska Airlines.
Engine power was maintained because of the crew’s “rapid response to reset the T-handles,” Alaska Airlines claimed.
Off-duty captain Joseph David Emerson was seated in the cockpit’s flight deck jump seat on the day of the incident, according to Alaska Airlines.
Prosecutors claim that Emerson had a “casual conversation” with the pilots before allegedly attempting to “grab and pull two red fire handles which would have activated the emergency fire suppression system & cut off fuel to its engines.”
According to the criminal complaint, Emerson allegedly stated, “I’m not OK,” and then reached up to grab the red fire handles.
However, the complaint claimed that due to the pilots’ “wrestling with Emerson,” Emerson was “unable” to fully depress the red T-handles and activate the engine shutoff.
According to the airline, the flight was headed from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco when it made a detour to Portland, Oregon. According to a federal official, Emerson was supposed to be part of the flight crew of a 737 leaving San Francisco.
According to the complaint, it took Emerson around 90 seconds from the moment he remarked “I’m not OK” to the moment he alerted the pilot.
According to the prosecution, flight attendants restrained Emerson’s wrists and seated him in the back of the aircraft.
According to the complaint, Emerson allegedly stated to one flight attendant “you need to cuff me right away or it’s going to be bad” and that “he just got thrown out of the flight deck.”
Emerson allegedly “tried to get the handle of an emergency exit” as the plane dropped but was prevented by a flight attendant, according to the prosecution.
According to police, Emerson was arrested in Portland and is accused of 83 counts of attempted murder. He has a Tuesday afternoon court date.
According to the complaint, Emerson allegedly told police that he thought he was suffering a “nervous breakdown.”
The lawsuit claims that he stated, “I pulled both emergencies shut off handles since I thought I was having a dream and I just wanna wake up.”
According to the complaint, Emerson claimed to have gone without sleep for 40 hours before the event and talked about using hallucinogenic mushrooms.
According to the complaint, Emerson also said he started feeling melancholy roughly six months ago.
A source acquainted with the investigation claims that the FBI is looking into the specific time he is said to have consumed the mushrooms. According to the source, investigators are trying to determine whether this incident was the result of a psychedelic trip, a mental health crisis, or anything else.
According to Alaska, there were four crew members and 80 passengers on the flight.
“We didn’t know whatever was happening till the flight attendant got on the loudspeaker and put out an announcement that it was an emergency situation & the plane needed to land immediately,” Aubrey Gavello, a passenger, told ABC News. “… She returned around 15 minutes later and announced that there was a medical emergency.
Gavello reported hearing a flight attendant reassuring the suspect “We’re gonna be fine, it’s OK, and we’ll get you out of the plane.”
The flight attendant returned to the speaker after we really landed and the man was led away, saying plainly, “He had a mental breakdown. Gavello declared, “We had to get him off the aircraft right away.
Alaska stated that Emerson began working at the company in 2001 as a Horizon First Officer. Later, in 2012, he departed the company to work as a pilot for Virgin America. Emerson returned to Alaska in 2016 after the airline acquired Virgin America, and the following year, the company announced that he had been promoted to Captain.
Emerson “completed his required FAA medical certifications in accordance to regulatory requirements while employed by Alaska, and at no time were his certifications denied, suspended, or revoked,” Alaska claimed.
According to the airline, police enforcement is looking into the incident. The Federal Bureau of Investigation “can assure those who are traveling there is no ongoing threat related to this incident.”
In a letter to carriers, the Federal Aviation Administration stated that the incident was “not connected in any way, shape, or form to current world events.”