An off-duty Air Canada pilot who was deadheading on a domestic flight from Toronto to St John’s was able to step in and help fly the plane when the First Officer became unwell and was incapacitated, the airline confirmed on Friday.
The off-duty pilot was being flown out as a passenger on the flight to operate another plane but was able to volunteer their skills when the First Officer became too unwell to fulfil their duties.
According to Canada’s Transportation Safety Board, the incident occurred on June 7, resulting in emergency services being called to meet the aircraft, although no update on the condition of the incapacitated pilot has been provided.
“The first officer became incapacitated during the flight. A deadheading captain assumed the crew member’s duties and landed the aircraft without further incident,” the TSB said in a statement.
“Emergency medical services met the aircraft at the gate,” the statement continued.
A spokesperson for Air Canada added that the Captain stepped into the First Officer’s shoes so that “there were two pilots on the flight deck as usual”.
In March, a pilot from a completely different airline helped out when the Captain of a Southwest Airlines flight from Harry Reid International Airport became unwell shortly after takeoff.
The Captain had to be dragged from the controls and out of the cockpit by flight attendants so that they could render medical assistance, at which point the other pilot noticed what was happening and offered to help.
A spokesperson for Southwest said the credentials of the pilot were checked before they were allowed to step foot on the flight deck and then help land the aircraft, which had diverted back to Las Vegas.
