The Seattle Times is reporting that prosecutors are recommending a 12-month jail term for an Alaska Airlines pilot who tried to shut down the engines of a Horizon Air regional jet almost two years ago. Joe Emerson pleaded guilty to a single federal charge interfering with flight crew members when he reached up from the flight deck jump seat he was in to pull the engine cutoff handles of both engines on the E175. Horizon is a subsidiary of Alaska. Emerson was flying off duty home to San Francisco after a weekend with friends in Washington State. The on-duty crew managed to prevent him from fully activating the system, which would have first cut fuel and hydraulics to the engines. Twisting the handles would have discharged halon fire extinguishers. Emerson’s guilty plea was part of a plea deal which also included his no-contest plea to state charges reckless endangerment, and, according to ABC News, a lifetime ban on flying. The incident occurred over Oregon.
Emerson later admitted to suffering from bouts of depression stemming from the death of his best friend and to taking psilocybin mushrooms two days before the flight. His actions prompted renewed discussion on the issue of pilot mental health and Emerson made high profile media appearances to discuss his experience. He told media that he felt like he was in a dream and that pulling the handles would somehow wake him up. He said in the interviews that he was afraid to seek help for his depression for fear of losing his job.
That last sentence illustrates a huge problem in the way mental health is addressed by the regulators.