Pilot collapses in front of passengers on Seattle-bound flight
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PORTLAND, Ore. - An Alaska Airlines jetliner bound for Seattle made an emergency landing in Portland, Ore., Thursday night after the pilot lost consciousness and fainted in front of the passengers. Officials later said he had the flu or a stomach bug.
It was the second time in as many weeks that a medical emergency in mid-air among a member of the flight crew had forced an Alaska Airlines flight to make an emergency landing.
The co-pilot landed Flight 473 safely after declaring an emergency to get priority care for the pilot, spokesman Paul McElroy said. All of the airlines' pilots are trained to fly single-handedly.
The pilot lost consciousness "somewhere over Oregon," McElroy said, then later regained consciousness and left the cockpit. A doctor on board the flight tended to him in the cabin until the plane landed and was met by medical personnel on the runway.
Passengers watched the drama unfold.
"The cockpit door had opened completely, and the pilot had come out, walked through the door and then fell on the aisle," said one woman who was a passenger aboard the plane. "We didn't know who was flying the plane, or if it was going to land or if the computer technology was just going to take over."
Another passenger, Hylan Slobodkin, also saw the pilot pass out.
"Came out of the cockpit and collapsed on the aisle," he said. "Hit his head on something and called doctors, and fortunately there was a young woman who was a fourth-year medical student who ran to his aid."
The pilot, who was not identified, was taken to a hospital after the plane landed,
By Friday morning his condition had significantly improved, according to doctors, who believe he suffered from a bad case of food poisoning or possibly the flu virus. The pilot reported that he felt fine when he reported for work.
The Boeing 737-700 with 116 passengers and five crew members left Los Angeles about 6:30 p.m. and touched down in Portland at about 9 p.m. It had been due to arrive in Seattle at 9:30 p.m.
McElroy says the pilot has been flying for Alaska for 28 years and was current on his six-month medical evaluation. The co-pilot is an 11-year Alaska Air veteran.
On Jan. 22, the co-pilot on an Alaska Airlines flight from Seattle to Las Vegas fainted briefly, and the pilot requested emergency landing priority to get prompt medical assistance for him.
"At this point we do not believe there was a connection between the two incidents," McElvoy said.
Twenty passengers with a tight schedule for connecting flights were put on a Horizon Air shuttle flight to Seattle on Thursday night, the spokesman said.
A new pilot was dispatched to Portland to fly the remaining passengers to Seattle on board the same plane.
It was the second time in as many weeks that a medical emergency in mid-air among a member of the flight crew had forced an Alaska Airlines flight to make an emergency landing.
The co-pilot landed Flight 473 safely after declaring an emergency to get priority care for the pilot, spokesman Paul McElroy said. All of the airlines' pilots are trained to fly single-handedly.
The pilot lost consciousness "somewhere over Oregon," McElroy said, then later regained consciousness and left the cockpit. A doctor on board the flight tended to him in the cabin until the plane landed and was met by medical personnel on the runway.
Passengers watched the drama unfold.
"The cockpit door had opened completely, and the pilot had come out, walked through the door and then fell on the aisle," said one woman who was a passenger aboard the plane. "We didn't know who was flying the plane, or if it was going to land or if the computer technology was just going to take over."
Another passenger, Hylan Slobodkin, also saw the pilot pass out.
"Came out of the cockpit and collapsed on the aisle," he said. "Hit his head on something and called doctors, and fortunately there was a young woman who was a fourth-year medical student who ran to his aid."
The pilot, who was not identified, was taken to a hospital after the plane landed,
By Friday morning his condition had significantly improved, according to doctors, who believe he suffered from a bad case of food poisoning or possibly the flu virus. The pilot reported that he felt fine when he reported for work.
The Boeing 737-700 with 116 passengers and five crew members left Los Angeles about 6:30 p.m. and touched down in Portland at about 9 p.m. It had been due to arrive in Seattle at 9:30 p.m.
McElroy says the pilot has been flying for Alaska for 28 years and was current on his six-month medical evaluation. The co-pilot is an 11-year Alaska Air veteran.
On Jan. 22, the co-pilot on an Alaska Airlines flight from Seattle to Las Vegas fainted briefly, and the pilot requested emergency landing priority to get prompt medical assistance for him.
"At this point we do not believe there was a connection between the two incidents," McElvoy said.
Twenty passengers with a tight schedule for connecting flights were put on a Horizon Air shuttle flight to Seattle on Thursday night, the spokesman said.
A new pilot was dispatched to Portland to fly the remaining passengers to Seattle on board the same plane.
Passengers should get half their money back because they paid for a seat on a plane with 2 pilots.
This must have been especially disturbing to anyone on this particular flight who'd recently seen the movie "Flight"...Seriously, though...Alaska has a well-deserved reputation for the best "drivers" in the business.
I think what really sucks is GMA this morning practically putting the pilot on trial for for flying passengers while he may have had a "pre-existing" condition. This was BEFORE any other news reports were out, and they downright ATTACKED with out knowing the story!! I love GMA, but this morning George and the crew were way out of line!
 @Sewhappy Oy.  Apparently GMA does not know how fast and hard that norovirus going around these days can hit.
there's a reason the aircraft has two (count 'um 2) pilots
"We didn't know who was flying the plane, or if it was going to land or if the computer technology was just going to take over."
Really? If you don't even know the number of pilots in the cockpit, maybe you shouldn't trust them with your life!
 @Smashquail We can't forget "OTTO!"  (the auto-pilot from "Airplane!")
Who cares? Seriously? What ever happened to dignity and respect for others? The pilot collapsed and the plane landed safely, he was turned over to medical personnel. That is all the information the general public needs to know. Photos and witness accounts are just pathetic and a lame attempt to get attention.Â
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When I treat my patients I will protect their privacy. They have a need, they don't need to be blasted all over the news just because of a medical condition. And yes, I have told many reporters where they can put their notepad. The worst ones are Kiro who will actually show pictures of critically ill and deceased patients. One reason why I refuse to watch that crappy station.Â
 @seattleemt I'm with you - mostly.  The difference I have with what you're characterizing is that what happened to this pilot is that it immediately became a public story.  Had the pilot stayed in the cockpit cabin and fainted, not news.  But this pilot fainted when exiting the cockpit and it immediately became of concern to the people on board because he fainted in the comfort of their living space.  Add into the mix all the terror threats we're bombarded with, and a pilot fainting is alarming.  And of course we now live in a society of instant internet access and you have a story reaching the news media as soon as the airwaves are available.  "OMG!! The pilot just came out and died!!"  "It's like that movie I just watched where the plane crashed!!"
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So the question becomes: Â At what level is the media responsible for toning up (or down) a news story depends a lot on how import an individual believes it effects themselves one way or another. Â Me personally? Â I didn't need to know that the flight even existed. Â But to the people on that flight, it could likely be the closest thing to having been hijacked, taken hostage, and traded for all the tea in China. Â Something they are most certainly grateful ended without tragedy.
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 @seattleemt I actually agree with you 100%.  Life is impossible to predict and **** happens no matter how well-prepared you are.  Having someone faint while on the job happens all over the world in every industry.
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The fact that the pilot fainted, yet the plane still landed safely without any injuries shows that this really is not truly news worthy beyond a simple and short description. Â
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I say Kudos to Alaska Airlines and the trained flight crew for handling the situation safely and calmly, and for getting the passengers and the plane landed safely and without further incident. Â They are trained for these kind of situations.
The captain had fish...
Scary. Happy everyone's fine.
Been many times driving or flying through Oregon got the feeling of passing out...
 @Windowseat Especially when you see the meth head who is pumping your gas. Hate that!
Who pumps our gas anymore?
 @Glassman  @Throbbinhood I remember in college, I kept hopping out to pump my gas and got the worst looks! I kept forgetting I couldn't pump my own gas. Back then if you pumped your own gas in WA, you saved some change per gallon. :)
 @Throbbinhood In Oregon you can't pump your own.
I once had an Alaska flight attendant tell me that the oxygen saturation in the passenger compartments was reduced to keep passengers calm and sleepy. She told me that O2 saturation was much richer in the cockpit. Could the pilot have fainted as a result of this?
 @bagsofdirt In point of fact, there's a separate oxygen system in the cockpit to prevent the pilots from blacking out if there's a loss of cabin pressure. FAA rules require "quick-donning" masks and further require that above a certain cruising altitude whichever crew member is controlling the aircraft to actually be wearing his or her mask, They're not like the "drop-down" emergency masks in the passenger cabin--more like the masks used with military flight suits.
@Arthur Marriott @bagsofdirt
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Yes, the cockpit has separate O2 systems for the pilots. But they are not required to don the mask unless one of them leaves the cockpit. The remaining pilot (still flying the plane) must put the mask on until the other pilot returns.
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When they wear the mask, it is much more difficult to understand them on the radio. I would have hated to have them always wearing masks when I talked to them. Military pilots wearing their masks are difficult to understand as well at times.
 @bagsofdirt The cockpit crew has no control over "oxygen saturation." They can control the cabin altitude and the rate of airflow, but the composition of the air is not controllable.
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Added note: The oxygen masks that fall out of the baggage compartment when the cabin loses pressure are attached to oxygen generators, not oxygen tanks. If you don't pull down as illustrated by the FA during the preflight briefing, you won't trigger the generator and you won't get any oxygen.
Passengers apparently were not assured by the flight crew that there was no danger because a co-pilot was flying the plane. Interesting the media would quote somebody saying ""We didn't know who was flying the plane, or if it was going to land or if the computer technology was just going to take over." Like she was speaking for all of the passengers.
"The co-pilot is an 11-year Alaska Air veteran"
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High time to give the co-pilot a promotion. Hope the pilot makes a full recovery.
 @barkingmad Seniority rules.
The airlines have gotten greedy beyond belief.
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Pilots are some of the lowest paid professions in the US. Many pilots are on food stamps and everyone should pay attention to what Sullenberger said at the Congressional Hearing after he saved the plane he was on that got hit by a birdstrike with an emergency landing in the Hudson: that pilots are underpaid, overworked and don't have adequate time to sleep.
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Time to start paying pilots, teachers and other professionals that we rely on for very important jobs what they're worth. When I'm at 40,000 feet, I want the guy who is responsible for my safety and the safety of hundreds of others to be paid well and very well rested.Â
 @NW-Economist Underpaid? That's BS. First year pilots at Southwest are paid $49,572, Captains: $180 thou and some change. Of course SW uses their pilots right up to the regulation 1,000 hrs. per month, so they do work hard for the money. Wall Street journal report did mention US Airways (Sullenberger's employer) first year pilots earn $21 thou and change; seems as if Sully just works for the worst possible airline for pilot pay. Overall, with the exception of regional airlines (first year pilots are paid as low as $12,000), pilots are well paid, especially those that work for cargo carriers like Fed Ex and UPS. As for "well-rested", that is the pilots responsibility as long as he's within the federal regs...his choice whether he spends his night grabbing the steward's ass on his nights away from the wife or settling in for his 8 hours
 @NW-Economist It would seem everything on the internet must be true - bonjour!
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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-moore/pilots-on-food-stamps_b_319929.html
 @NW-Economist Having multiple family members work for Alaska Airlines as part of the flight crew, I can assure you they are not on food-stamps and mare making more than enough to never need them. Â
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um....where do you get your information?
Having a family member who flies for Alaska - I can reasonably and safely assure you no pilot of a jet-engined major airline is on food stamps.
However - many of the prop-driven commuters and sister airlines are another story....
 @Throbbinhood So the next time you fly to Spokane or Friday Harbor on a Horizon Air puddle jumper you want the guy on foodstamps?Â
....I don't think I'll worry about ANY Horizon flight, if I may show my personal bias...
@NW-Economist So what is your proposal?
 @Dean Fuller I would ban flying altogether.  Take the train, drive, or steamship..  Worked just fine before airplanes were invented.
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Just exactly what is the BIG RUSH to get someplace, anyway...??
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Then you could delete all those useless abusive TSA agents, to boot...!!
 @Biggg Donnn  @Dean Fuller You'd think so, but the TSA is on the trains and buses now as well. Slow, steady encroachment on our rights. First it was the planes, now the trains and buses.....I wouldn't be surprised to see TSA checkpoints along highways next. And there will be a far too large subset of the population that will cheer this kind of police state mentality on, believing safety is worth more than liberty, and getting neither for all their thoughts to the contrary.
 @Dean Fuller Pay them more, work them less, make them healthier....
40% NO, of course not, it's not neccessary. It can come out of the BILLION$$$ profits the airlines made on exhorbitant luggage fees!
@NW-Economist @Dean Fuller Sounds great, so you are okay paying 40% more for that ticket to Las Vegas?
Sounds like another case of the pilot sleeping on the job...
Do do people not understand that there is a pilot and a co-pilot on planes? Â They thought he was the only one up there? Either way, that has to be terrifying for the passengers.Â
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Hope he's feeling better. Lots of people recovering from the flu and norovirus, and both can make you pass out, even as you recover. Â
Wonder if he got hit by the flu and was heading to the restroom?
 @enso You mean the Norovirus, a stomach virus. That's not the flu, btw. And yes, that's very possible.Â
@DT @enso When I had the flu, and yes it was the flu not Norovirus or other food poisoning, I felt like heaving a few times. Didn't, but crawled to the bathroom anyway just in case.
@DTÂ As usual, you astound us all with your superior knowledge....
Were they over macho grande?
 @barkleydog I'll never get over macho grande!
I hope Alaska is giving its pilots/mechanics/attendants sufficient time off between flights so they can rest.
 @flashlight With two pilots having this issue recently, I'm thinking that perhaps they aren't taking enough time off after having a flu or stomach virus. It leaves you very weak.Â
 @flashlight Believe me, they are giving sufficient time.  The FAA is very VERY strict on that.
 @flashlight Yeah whatever happened to 9-5? 8 hours for work/8 for sleep/8 for whatever you like to do. Especially some jobs like that they shouldnt be working long shifts.
 @flashlight The FAA has strict rules concerning pilots and how many hours they fly the big jets.