Celebrating the Life of Captain Mike Johnston
IT IS WITH HEAVY HEART
that we announce the loss of one of our own, Captain Michael Johnston. As you’ve probably heard on the headlines by now, Captain Johnston was the pilot who died inflight on American Airlines flight 550, enroute PHX-BOS.
First Officer Steve Stackelhouse declared a Medical Emergency and diverted safely to Syracuse. Sadly, however, efforts by the crew and emergency personnel to save Captain Johnston ultimately failed.
Captain Johnston was hired by America West Airlines in 1990, the very same year I was. We had somewhat parallel careers, first flying the DeHavilland Dash 8 (now Bombardier Dash 8), initially as first officers and then upgrading to captain. Michael has also flown the 737 and 757. Like me, Mike has most recently been flying the Airbus A321 class airplane out of Phoenix.
Mike is survived by his wife Betty Jean, eight children and five grandchildren.
Following are a few fairly decent articles about Captain Johnston and the fateful flight. I hope you join me in honoring this fine man by reading about his life!
FINAL FLIGHT
“To fly west, my friend, is the one final check we all must take.”
—Author Unknown.
Our crew Placing flowers on his casket . . .
https://www.facebook.com/1flygal444/videos/10206699200137774/
Articles
NOTES: A brief clarification of relevant issues being brought up by the press:
- Airline pilots have rigorous medical exams every six months.
- While captain Johnston had a history of heart issues, after addressing those, his medical had been reinstated and he was released to safely and legally fly.
- Media is reporting the “copilot” was able to “safely land.” This is a common misconception and a misleading statement by the press. The first officer (colloquially known as a “copilot”) is always a fully-qualified pilot, and regularly trades landings and takeoffs with the captain. “Safely landing” is something he does every day on the job.
- First Officer Stackelhouse is an excellent pilot with whom I’ve flown regularly—and, on the chessboard, his knight game is devastating!
- While he was no doubt very busy operating “single pilot,” the first officer is more than able to perform all required tasks to “safely land.” Moreover, today’s highly automated cockpits would have helped to relieve his task loading immensely.
- Media is reporting the “copilot” requested “landing assistance.” This is also a bit misleading. The first officer had declared a medical emergency, which would give him priority handling and medical emergency assistance upon landing. However, he would be the only one actually flying the plane.
- For more on inflight medical emergency procedures, see last year’s post: http://capnaux.com/welcome-aboard-passengers-part-ii-medical-emergency/
- Inflight pilot deaths are rare, but not unprecedented. According to the FAA, seven pilots for U.S. airlines and one charter pilot have died during flights since 1994.
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