Off-duty Alaska pilot may have taken psychedelic mushrooms before trying to shut down engines

An off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot accused of attempting to shut off the plane’s engines during a Horizon Air flight out of Everett took psychedelic mushrooms about 48 hours before the incident, investigators said in charging papers.

Federal prosecutors on Tuesday charged Joseph Emerson, 44, with one count of interfering with flight crew members and attendants on the Sunday evening flight. Emerson is facing 83 counts of attempted murder in Oregon state court, charges that were also filed on Tuesday.

Emerson, who was riding in a flight deck jump seat behind the Horizon pilots, is accused of attempting to activate a fire suppression system that would’ve cut the fuel supply to the San Francisco-bound plane’s engines.

In statements to the Horizon flight crew and to police, Emerson described himself as suffering from depression and insomnia, claiming he believed he was dreaming when he attempted to disable the plane, an FBI special agent investigating the matter said in an affidavit. Emerson, the FBI agent continued, told police “it was his first-time taking mushrooms.”

Emerson was arrested when the plane landed at Portland International Airport. Shortly after 4 a.m. Monday, Emerson was booked at the Multnomah County Detention Center in Portland, where he remains jailed.

Emerson, a California resident with ties to Seattle, has been a commercial airline pilot since 2001 and has flown with Alaska since 2016.

Horizon Air flight 2059 departed Paine Field at 5:23 p.m. Sunday carrying 84 people, including Emerson.

Gate agents and flight crew did not notice any signs of impairment that would have kept Emerson from flying on the jump seat, an Alaska Airlines spokesperson said.

It’s routine for airline employees, if seats are available, to hitch free rides back to their home bases after their shifts end. A pilot commuting in this way will often choose the jump seat to chat with the pilots flying. In Emerson’s case, the flight deck jump seat was the only one free on the plane.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has a mandatory drug-testing program for on-duty crew members that is administered by all airlines, including Alaska and Horizon. On-duty pilots and flight attendants can be tested randomly before or after a flight.

According to the FBI agent’s statement, Emerson, seated in the jump seat, made casual conversation with the Horizon crew until the flight was about halfway between Astoria, Oregon, and Portland. Then Emerson declared “I’m not OK.”

One of the Horizon pilots watched as Emerson reached up and grabbed two red handles, pulling them down. The handles would’ve cut the fuel supply to the engines and activated the aircraft fire suppression system used to extinguish engine fires.

If Emerson had successfully pulled the handles, the plane would have turned into a glider within seconds, according to the FBI agent’s statement.

In a statement, Alaska Air Group – the SeaTac-based parent company of Alaska Airlines and its regional subsidiary, Horizon Air – said “engine power was not lost.”

After a struggle with the pilots that lasted approximately 30 seconds, Emerson exited the cockpit. The pilots exited autopilot and started diverting to Portland International Airport.

Heading toward the back of the plane, Emerson told a flight attendant he needed to be handcuffed “or it’s going to be bad.” Flight attendants then cuffed Emerson and secured him to a seat in the rear of the plane.

During the flight’s descent, Emerson tried to grab the handle of the emergency exit, but a flight attendant stopped him by placing her hands on top of his.

The flight attendant later told investigators Emerson said he “messed everything up” and that “he tried to kill everybody,” according to the FBI agent’s statement.

Emerson told Port of Portland police and a flight attendant that his best friend had recently died and asked when this nightmare would end, according to an affidavit filed by the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office. A police officer said Emerson did not seem “outwardly” intoxicated

The flight landed in Portland at 6:26 p.m. Passengers were given travel vouchers and ultimately sent on to San Francisco hours later.

Emerson is alleged to have told police he was having a “nervous breakdown,” that he had not slept in 40 hours and had been suffering from depression for six months. He felt dehydrated and tired, according to the FBI investigator’s statement.

“I didn’t feel OK,” he told police, according to the FBI agent. “It seemed like the pilots weren’t paying attention to what was going on.”