Pilot Charged With 83 Counts of Attempted Murder

An off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot faces 83 counts of attempted murder after authorities say he tried to turn off the engines mid-flight, reports NBC News. The incident happened Sunday on a flight out of Everett, Washington, bound for San Francisco. The airline says the off-duty pilot was sitting in the "jump seat" of the cockpit, as is common when pilots are commuting from one airport to another, per CNN. At some point, the man identified as 44-year-old Joseph Emerson "unsuccessfully attempted to disrupt the operation of the engines," said the airline. ABC News reports he did so by "grabbing the fire extinguisher handles on the engines."

The captain and first officer subdued the man and handcuffed him to a seat, according to the airline and a federal official who spoke to ABC, as captured in audio from the plane to air-traffic controllers recorded by LiveATC.net: "We've got the guy that tried to shut the engines down out of the cockpit, and he doesn't sound like he's causing any issues in the back right now," the pilot said. "I think he's subdued. Other than that, we want law enforcement as soon as we get on the ground and are parked." The plane diverted to Portland, where Emerson was taken into custody. Flight 2059 had 80 passengers and four crew members, and Emerson is charged with 83 felony counts of attempted murder, 83 counts of reckless endangerment, and one count of endangering an aircraft, per booking records.

The flight was operated by Alaska Airlines subsidiary Horizon Airlines. "The FAA is engaged with Alaska and Horizon airlines and is supporting law enforcement investigations into Sunday evening's incident," said the FAA in a statement. More details about Emerson were not immediately available. He was reportedly scheduled to be part of a 737 flight crew in San Francisco. "We are grateful for the professional handling of the situation by the Horizon flight crew and appreciate our guests' calm and patience throughout this event," Alaska Airlines said in a statement. (More Alaska Airlines stories.)