Off-Duty Alaska Airlines Pilot Who Tried To Kill Engines Mid-Flight Could Soon Walk Free After Reaching Plea Deal
- Sleep deprived and high on magic mushrooms, Joseph Emerson was accused of pulling the emergency engine shut off handles on an Alaska Airlines flight to San Francisco in October 2023. He's now reached a plea agreement that could see him released from prison very soon.
A sleep-deprived off-duty pilot who was accused of trying to down an Alaska Airlines jet packed with passengers flying from Seattle to San Francisco in October 2023 has reached a plea deal with prosecutors, which could see him released from federal prison very soon.
Joseph Emerson was sitting on a jump seat in the cockpit of an Embraer E75 regional jet, operated by Alaska’s regional subsidiary Horizon Air, when he suddenly lunged for the two emergency engine shut-off handles in the ceiling panel and started to pull them down.
If he had succeeded in fully pulling the shut-off handles all the way down, then the fuel supply to both engines would have been cut off and the aircraft would have turned “into a glider within seconds.”
The incident occurred aboard Alaska Airlines flight 2059 from Seattle Paine Field while the aircraft was at cruising altitude halfway between Astoria, Oregon and Portland.
Emerson had worked for Alaska Airlines since 2001 and was commuting back home after a series of shifts. As is common in the US aviation industry, when there’s no space available in the passenger cabin, off-duty pilots are allowed to ‘ride’ the spare jumpseat in the cockpit.
Following his arrest, Emerson admitted that he hadn’t slept for 48 hours, was tired and dehydrated, and was going through a mental health crisis. He also admitted to having taken magic mushrooms for the first time ever, a short time before boarding the flight.
Emerson could have been battling depression for six years after he was hit hard when one of his close friends suddenly died. At the time he pulled the emergency shut-off handles, he claimed he was in a dream-like trance and just wanted to wake up.
“I am not okay!”
Joseph Emerson announced these words just before he threw off his headset and lunged for the emergency engine shut-off handles.
Investigators later determined that Emerson’s actions had deployed fire suppression bottles into both engines, but the Captain was able to grapple with Emerson and stop him from fully pulling the handles down and cutting off the fuel supply.
Emerson was initially held on attempted murder charges, but a Grand Jury later dropped these charges and indicted him on 83 counts of recklessly endangering another person.
On Friday, however, Emerson reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors in which he pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of Interference with flight crew members and attendants, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.
Joseph Emerson told investigators shortly after his arrest
“Yah … I pulled both emergency shut off handles because I thought I was dreaming and I just wanna wake up.”
Prosecutors will, however, petition the court for Emerson to be sentenced to a prison sentence of 18-24 months after taking into account various sentencing factors.
Although it will be up to the Oregon district court to determine Emerson’s final sentence, if the judge accepts the recommendation of prosecutors, the now ex-pilot could be eligible for immediate release.
The court is also expected to order Emerson to pay restitution, which could be at least $59,608 to Alaska Airlines alone in order to cover the cost of Flight 2059’s diversion to Portland.
