Off-duty pilot who tried to cut a flight’s engines midair to be sentenced in federal case
November 16, 2025
A former Alaska Airlines pilot who tried to cut the engines of a passenger flight in 2023 is set to appear for sentencing in federal court in Portland, Oregon. Joseph Emerson was riding in an extra seat in the cockpit of a Horizon Air flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco, and was subdued by the crew. The plane landed safely in Portland. Emerson pleaded guilty or no-contest to all charges against him in September as part of plea agreements with state and federal prosecutors. He was sentenced in state court to five years of probation. In the federal case, prosecutors seek one year in prison while his attorneys seek probation.