Get Real
Off-duty airline pilots are often allowed to “deadhead” — ride in the cockpits of passenger jets, especially when they’re heading to captain an upcoming flight from the destination. Alaska Airlines pilot Joseph David Emerson was in such a position, riding along in Flight 2059 from Everett, Wash., to San Francisco, Calif. The on-duty pilots say that while at 31,000 feet, Emerson, 44, told them “I’m not OK,” jumped up, and tried to activate a fire suppression system that would cut off fuel to the engines. The pilots were able to stop that, and got Emerson off the flight deck. He walked to the back of the plane, sat down, and told a flight attendant, “You need to cuff me right now or it’s going to be bad.” Luckily, he was restrained in flex-cuffs while the plane made an emergency landing in Portland, Ore. Emerson explained to investigators that he hadn’t slept for 40 hours after experimenting with psychedelic mushrooms. He was charged with 83 counts of attempted murder — one each for every passenger and crew member — and several other crimes. Police note Emerson also told them he was “trying to wake up and didn’t feel like ‘this was real’.” (RC/KATU Portland) ...You can bet things for him are extremely real now.Story Update: Emerson pleaded no contest in Oregon state court to reckless endangerment and first-degree endangering an aircraft, and was sentenced to 50 days in jail, with credit for the time he has spent in jail sufficient for all those days, plus 664 hours of community service, $60,569 in restitution, and five years of probation.
He also pleaded guilty, apparently to the same charges, in federal court. Federal sentencing is set for November 17, 2025, and could be as much as 20 years in prison as his plea deal does not include a suggested term.
This story is in True’s book collections, in Volume 30.
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I believe humanity is held back by the lack of thinking. I provoke thought with examples of what happens when we don’t think, and when we do. This is True is my primary method: stories like this come out every week by email, and basic subscriptions are free. Click here for a subscribe form.