Pilot travelling as passenger helps land plane as captain faints on US flight

UNITED STATES AIRLINES

In yet another bizarre on-air incident a pilot who was off-duty and travelling as a passenger had to rush to the cockpit to help when the flight's captain got sick and nearly lost consciousness.

According to reports, the incident took place on a Southwest Airlines flight travelling from Las Vegas to Columbus, Ohio on Wednesday.

The plane was almost two hours in flight when the incident happened. Another pilot, who worked for an entirely different company happened to be a passenger on the flight. He jumped into the cockpit to assist and took over the radio communications, while the other pilot on the flight handled the controls.

The aircraft was forced to return to Las Vegas as the captain needed urgent medical attention. The duo managed to safely land the plane in Las Vegas, before it flew to Columbus with a fresh crew.

Southwest Airlines thanked the off-duty pilot who was at hand to help and avoid a disaster.

“We salute the crew’s professionalism and value our customers’ tolerance and comprehension of the circumstance,” the airline company said in the statement.