You knew this was coming.
Three passengers have already sued Alaska Airlines over an
incident in which an off-duty pilot tried to shut down the engines of a plane.
It happened last month on Alaska Airlines subsidiary Horizon
Air. The off-duty pilot was traveling as a ‘deadhead’ on the plane and has
since been charged with 83 counts of attempted murder.
Three passengers banded together to file the lawsuit,
accusing the airline of breaching its duty to ensure flight safety. The suit
also named Horizon Air as a defendant.
The incident happened on October 22 while the plane was en
route from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco.
The plaintiff list could grow, however. The lawsuit was
filed in the state of Washington as a class-action suit.
Alaska Airlines and its law firm did not respond to a
request for comment.
For now, the plaintiffs are seeking a public explanation for
the incident and are wondering why the pilot was not subject to preflight
screening, even though he was off duty. The lawsuit does seek damages that will
be determined depending on the outcome of the trial.
Joseph David Emerson was the Alaska Airlines pilot riding as
a standby employee passenger on the flight deck. Emerson is being held in an
Oregon jail, but has previously admitted to police that he took magic mushrooms
before the flight.
The flight was diverted to Portland, Oregon.
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