New cockpit audio reveals chaos as off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot tried to shut engines off mid-flight

A erstwhile Alaska Airlines aviator who tried to unopen down the engines of a packed 2023 formation aft taking psychedelic mushrooms forced crews into tense moments captured connected melodramatic cockpit audio.

Joseph Emerson, a aviator astatine the time, was off-duty connected the Oct. 22, 2023, Horizon Air formation from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco erstwhile the formation unit subdued him.

He was riding successful an other spot successful the cockpit aboard Flight 2059, which was carrying 84 people, erstwhile audio obtained by KGW Portland captured the infinitesimal helium reached for the motor controls.

"I'm not OK," Emerson could beryllium heard saying repeatedly.

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One of the unit members, who sounded confused, asked Emerson, "What's wrong? You privation to beryllium home?"

What sounds similar a conflict tin past beryllium heard successful the cockpit. One of the pilots past alerted aerial postulation controllers to the emergency.

"We request to marque an exigency landing," the aviator said. "We got a leap seater who conscionable tried to unopen our engines off. We request to spell nonstop to Portland now."

The aviator was referring to Emerson, and a abbreviated clip later, the aviator reached backmost retired to aerial postulation controllers with an update.

"We’ve got the feline that tried to unopen the engines down retired of the cockpit, and helium doesn’t dependable similar he’s causing immoderate issues successful the backmost close now," the aviator said. "I deliberation he’s subdued. Other than that, yeah, we privation instrumentality enforcement arsenic soon arsenic we get connected the crushed and park."

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Joseph David Emerson, 44, was arraigned successful Multnomah County Circuit Court connected Tues., Oct. 24, 2023. (Dave Killen/Pool)

As the unit continued its descent into Portland, the aerial postulation controller asked what the menace level was.

The aviator told the controller that the menace was successful the backmost of the plane, adding that the menace level was reduced. He said helium planned to cheque successful with the formation attendant to marque definite everything was inactive "running smoothly."

The controller past asked however precocious the menace level had reached during the incident.

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Alaska Airlines confirmed the incidental took spot connected 1 of its flights successful Seattle, Washington. (Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)

"It escalated to a four," the aviator said, adding that "he’s retired of the cockpit now."

The aviator added that Emerson was handcuffed successful a leap spot toward the backmost of the plane, giving a heads-up for erstwhile instrumentality enforcement arrived onboard.

"Right now, he’s staying calm," the aviator said.

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The level was yet diverted to Portland, wherever it landed safely.

At the time, Emerson, a California resident, told authorities helium was grieving a friend's decease and had taken psychedelic mushrooms astir 2 days earlier. He besides said helium had gone much than 40 hours without sleep.

Believing helium was dreaming, helium said helium pulled the 2 reddish handles that would person activated the plane’s occurrence suppression strategy and chopped disconnected substance to its engines.

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Joseph David Emerson, 44, is arraigned successful Multnomah County Circuit Court connected Tues., Oct. 24, 2023. (Dave Killen/Pool)

Emerson was federally charged with interfering with a formation crew. In Oregon, helium was charged with 83 counts of endangering different idiosyncratic and 1 number of endangering an aircraft.
In September, helium pleaded blameworthy to charges against him arsenic portion of a woody with authorities and national prosecutors. Federal prosecutors primitively asked a justice to enforce a one-year situation sentence.

"Pilots are not perfect. They are human," the justice said. "They are people, and each radical request assistance sometimes."

Before proceeding his sentence, Emerson spoke, saying helium regretted his actions.

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"I’m not a victim. I americium present arsenic a nonstop effect of my actions," helium told the court. "I tin archer you that this precise tragic lawsuit has forced maine to turn arsenic an individual."

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Emerson received a 50-day jailhouse condemnation with recognition for clip served and 5 years of probation. He was besides sentenced to 5 years of probation, 664 hours of assemblage work – 8 hours for each idiosyncratic helium endangered – and ordered to wage much than $60,000 successful restitution, astir each of it to Alaska Air Group.

Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano and Sophia Compton, arsenic good arsenic The Associated Press, contributed to this report.