Pilot Joseph David Emerson, 46, attempted to crash Horizon Air Flight 2059 , operating for Alaska Airlines while he was still off-duty, but seated in the cockpit Joseph David Emerson was travelling as an off-duty passenger when the incident unfolded (Image: X)

An ex-Alaska Airlines pilot has learned his fate after he confessed to attempting to cut the engines of a passenger flight while off-duty in the cockpit. Joseph David Emerson, 46, made this startling admission to police as he detailed his attempt to crash the plane.

This week, US District Judge Amy Baggio in Portland, Oregon, sentenced Emerson to time served and three years of supervised release. Despite federal prosecutors pushing for a one-year prison term, the judge ruled that Emerson would not serve additional jail

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