A Turkish Airlines flight diverted to New York on Wednesday morning after the captain collapsed and died onboard. The carrier’s Airbus A350 was scheduled to fly from Seattle to Istanbul over and 11-hour flight, however the crew declared an emergency over the Canadian Arctic four hours into the flight and began its diversion to the Big Apple, according to FlightAware.
Yahya Üstün, a Turkish Airlines spokesperson, stated that the 59-year-old pilot has flown for the carrier since 2007 and last passed a medical examination in March. He noted that Turkish aviation officials found that the pilot had no health problems that prevented him from flying. Üstün added:
“When the first medical intervention to our captain on board was unsuccessful, the cockpit crew consisting of one pilot and one co-pilot decided to make an emergency landing, but our pilot lost his life before landing.”
“Our aircraft has decided to land in New York and the return of our passengers to Turkey is planned via New York station.”
This isn’t the first time that a captain has died during a flight. In 2023, a LATAM pilot left the flight deck unwell during a service between Miami and Chile. He went to the lavatory and collapsed. The plane diverted to Panama City, but medical personnel declared the captain dead. A 57-year-old American Airlines pilot died similarly on a Boston to Phoenix flight in 2015.
Turkish Airlines was already on the minds of many New Yorkers because of the federal charges levied last week against Mayor Eric Adams, including solicitation of contributions by a foreign national and bribery. The Department of Justice alleges that Adams, a vocal fan of Turkish Airlines, accepted thousands of dollars in free flights and seat upgrades from the carrier.