A former off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot who nearly shut down an aircraft’s engines over Oregon airspace in 2023 is set to appear in state and federal court in Portland on Friday to face criminal charges.

Joseph David Emerson, 46, is expected to plead guilty in federal court to a single count of interference with flight crew members and attendants, a felony.

Emerson will also plead no contest in state court to one felony count of endangering an aircraft and 83 misdemeanors — one for each individual onboard the aircraft — of recklessly engaging another person.

According to prosecutors, on Oct. 22, 2023, Emerson was catching a ride home from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco, while seated in the cockpit jumpseat of an Embraer 175 jet operated by Horizon Airlines.

Somewhere between Astoria and Portland — more than 30,000 feet in the air — Emerson removed the headphones from ears and according to court records, declared: “I’m not OK,” before proceeding to nearly cut off the plane’s fuel supply midflight.

Witnesses have said he was acting erratically and was seemingly confused about his reality.

The case has raised questions about barriers pilots face if they need to access mental health care.

Pilot accused of trying to shut down plane engines was afraid to report depression, colleagues say

Emerson was returning from a gathering marking the anniversary of the death of his closest friend. He later told police he had untreated depression and that some 48 hours before the flight, he consumed hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Getting mental health treatment has been a challenging and even career-ending for pilots. The Federal Aviation Administration has historically relied on pilots to self-report mental health concerns. Doing so has threatened pilots’ ability to fly.

Emerson’s wife, Sarah Stretch, told OPB in 2023 that she’d urged her husband to seek care, but he told her being out of work would hurt the family’s finances and would be too arduous.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/09/04/joseph-emerson-pilot-criminal-charges/