JUNEAU (NBC) — The off-duty pilot accused of trying to bring down an Alaska Airlines flight told investigators he had not slept for 40 hours and believed he was having a “nervous breakdown,” and also admitted to the use of psychedelic mushrooms, according to a federal complaint filed today.
The FBI is investigating whether the off-duty pilot — Joseph Emerson, 44, of California — was under the influence when he tried to shut down the plane’s engines while sitting in the cockpit of Sunday’s flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco, officials told NBC News.
Emerson denied to investigators he had taken any medications before getting on the flight, but spoke about becoming depressed six months ago and said it was his first time taking mushrooms, the complaint said.
Joseph Emerson. Joe Emerson / via Facebook
“I didn’t feel OK,” Emerson said, telling investigators that he was tired and dehydrated, according to the complaint. “It seemed like the pilots weren’t paying attention to what was going on.”
“I pulled both emergency shut off handles because I thought I was dreaming and I just wanna wake up,” he added.
Emerson now faces one count of interfering with flight crew members and attendants, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon said.
He is already being held in an Oregon jail on 167 charges, including 83 counts of attempted murder, and was awaiting an arraignment this afternoon.
Emerson had been sitting in a flight deck jump seat in the cockpit, which is permitted for pilots who may be commuting between airports.
The federal complaint alleges that Emerson was engaging in “casual conversation” with the other pilots, discussing the weather and his career with Alaska Airlines, when he attempted to grab two red engine shutoff handles. Emerson threw his headset across the cockpit and told the pilots “I am not OK” as he reached for the handles, the complaint said.
One of the pilots grabbed Emerson’s wrists, while the other declared an in-flight emergency. Emerson had to be “wrestled with” for several seconds until he settled down, the pilots told investigators.
Emerson had allegedly tried to pull the engine fire suppression controls, which would have turned off the engines at cruising altitude. (Experts say the ability to quickly turn off an engine may be crucial in emergency situations, such as a fire.)
The off-duty pilot was then forced out of the cockpit, and the other pilots secured the cockpit door.
Flight attendants told investigators that after they were alerted to an issue up front, they went to bring Emerson to the back.
Emerson said, “You need to cuff me right now or it’s going to be bad,” according to the flight attendants.
Flex handcuffs were placed around Emerson’s wrists. While seated at the back of the plane, he attempted to grab the handle of an emergency exit but was stopped by a flight attendant who placed her hands on top of his, the complaint said.
A flight attendant said Emerson made comments like “I messed everything up” and acknowledged that he put people’s lives at risk.
Passengers on Flight 2059, operated by Alaska Airlines subsidiary Horizon Air, lauded the crew’s quick actions and ability to stop Emerson.
“I made eye contact with him,” passenger Aubrey Gavello said after Emerson was booted from the cockpit and walked to the back of the plane. “It was like one of those soul-chilling, dead in the eyes, just calm and just kind of like he was taking in everyone around him.”
About 35 minutes after takeoff, a flight attendant “frantically” alerted passengers over the loudspeaker that “we have a situation” and that the pilots needed to land the plane, Gavello said.
No details were given, but Gavello said it sounded like a medical-related emergency.
Gavello said she saw the flight attendant and a man, who at the time no one knew was an off-duty pilot, walking from the cockpit to the back of the plane.
She said the man was in zip ties and the flight attendant was “trying to calm him down, saying that we were going to get him on the ground and everything was going to be OK.”
The man remained seated in the back, Gavello said, and the flight attendant informed the cabin, “I just want to let everyone know they’re safe” and assured the passengers that the plane was not having mechanical issues.
“Her second announcement calmed everyone down,” Gavello said, “and then we landed.”
The plane made an emergency stop in Portland, where police were waiting to board the aircraft and escort Emerson off.
Gavello’s boyfriend, Alex Wood, who said he had slept through the ordeal and only woke up when they were landing, had no clue that it was an Alaska Airlines employee accused of putting lives in peril and only learned more details after seeing news reports Monday morning.
“It’s very scary to know that that person was allowed in the cockpit, in the jump seat, where he was sitting,” Wood said.
“I thought I was being dramatic because I got off the plane and my boyfriend and I weren’t sitting together, and I was like shaking and he was asleep the whole time, so he didn’t know,” Gavello said. “And I was like, am I being so dramatic or was that really traumatizing?”
Alaska Airlines said it was “grateful for the professional handling of the situation” by the flight crew. The FBI also said it was investigating with support from the Federal Aviation Administration.
Emerson was initially employed by Horizon Air in 2001, and has also worked for Alaska Airlines and Virgin America.
A review of his mental state will be part of the investigation, aviation analysts said.
Pilots over 40 must undergo a medical evaluation every six months and disclose whether they are having mental health issues or taking medications. But full mental health evaluations are not part of a pilot’s physical exams, according to the FAA. Emerson’s last physical was in September.
Emerson lives with his wife and young children in the Bay Area community of Pleasant Hill, where a neighbor said he was surprised by the allegations.
There are “no indications of anything wrong” with him, Ed Yee said.
By TOM COSTELLO, JAY BLACKMAN, ERIK ORTIZ and ANDREW BLANKSTEIN/NBC
Tom Costello is an NBC News correspondent based in Washington, D.C.
Jay Blackman is an NBC News producer covering such areas a transportation, space, medical and consumer issues.
Erik Ortiz is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital focusing on racial injustice and social inequality.
Andrew Blankstein is an investigative reporter for NBC News. He covers the Western U.S., specializing in crime, courts and homeland security.