A pilot who allegedly tried to shut down his plane’s engines during a flight while off duty has been charged with more than 80 counts of attempted murder in the US. The incident occurred on Sunday Alaska Airlines flight from Everett, Washington to San Francisco, California happened, the airline said in a statement on Monday. The man “tried to stop the engines from functioning, without success.”
There was a “credible security threat.” However, the pilot and co-pilot reacted quickly: the engines never stopped and the flight, operated by Horizon Air on behalf of Alaska Air, was diverted safely to land in Portland, Oregon. All passengers could have continued on a later flight.
According to media reports, this is a 44-year-old man who was detained at the airport. Initially there was no further information, including a possible motive. The FBI and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), among others, are investigating the incident.