A former Alaska Airlines pilot who attempted to cut the engines of a passenger flight in 2023, Joseph Emerson, is facing sentencing in federal court after entering a plea of guilty or no-contest to all charges. The Horizon Air flight he endangered on October 22, 2023, was safely diverted to Portland after being forced to make an emergency landing with over 80 people onboard, as reported by KGW.
This incident occurred when Emerson, who was off-duty but riding in the cockpit, became unstable after consuming psychedelic mushrooms and tried to disable the aircraft mid-flight. The cabin crew ultimately managed to subdue him, leading to him requesting the flight attendants to restrain him, "because he wasn’t sure what was real," his lawyer stated in a report by OregonLive. After the incident, Emerson admitted to being in a state of mental crisis and stated to officers that he just wanted to "wake up."
Despite Emerson's attempt, he couldn't pull the levers all the way, which would have cut off hydraulics and fuel to the engines, a move that could have catastrophically turned the plane into a glider in moments. "Both pilots heroically carried out their responsibilities to secure the safety of the aircraft, its passengers and crew,” the prosecutor mentioned in court documents obtained by OregonLive. This event resulted in Emerson spending 46 days in custody, a period during which he began journaling and came to the realization that he was an alcoholic, a condition he had been battling for years.
Emerson's lawyer has previously stated that Emerson put his hands in hot coffee in the galley "in an effort to wake up" and then reached for the emergency exit, but was stopped by an attendant. Following his arrest, Emerson was seen in a Port of Portland police cell, as noted by his attorney, banging his head against the walls. "I just wanna wake up," he exclaimed in distress, as reported by OregonLive. His plea agreement with state and federal prosecutors came about as Emerson sought to take responsibility for his disturbing actions and to avoid further jail time, according to statements by his attorney Noah Horst to KGW.
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