Alaska Airlines pilot avoids jail time after midair engine incident

Joseph Emerson, an Alaska Airlines pilot, was released without prison time after attempting to cut a flight’s engines midair in 2023. Emerson reached a plea deal earlier this year and was sentenced to time served along with three years of supervised release.

Investigators reported that Emerson was in an extra seat in the cockpit of a Horizon Air flight from Everett to San Francisco when the incident occurred. The flight crew successfully subdued him, and the flight was diverted to Portland.