TV Documentary Looks At Pilot Mental Health

A New York Times documentary looks into the mental health issues affecting the aviation industry and builds the case using the sensational story of an Alaska Airlines pilot who tried to crash a plane he was on last fall. Capt. Joe Emerson was in the jump seat of the E175 hitching a ride to San Francisco from a weekend with friends in Oregon when he tried to pull the engine fire extinguishers. The pilots flying managed to keep him from fully deploying the fuel cutoff switches and he was restrained by the crew. Emerson talks about the emotional and mental struggles, compounded by an experiment with magic mushrooms two days earlier, that led to his out-of-character actions, but the program also looks at the broad issue of pilot mental health, according to a review by The Daily Beast.

The Beast says Emerson speaks frankly about his love of aviation but also the challenges faced by all airline pilots, among them lying about their medical status. The Times also looks at the case of University of North Dakota aviation student John Hauser who took his own life because he knew getting help for his mental health struggles would end his dream of being a commercial pilot. The show airs Aug. 23 on FX.