As God is my Co-pilot
An American Airlines pilot asked Christians on his flight to identify
themselves and suggested the non-Christians discuss the faith with them, the
airline said.
The case was handed over to the airline's personnel department for an
investigation, spokesman Tim Wagner said today.
"It falls along the lines of a personal level of sharing that may not be
appropriate for one of our employees to do while on the job," he said
earlier.
American's Flight 34 was headed from Los Angeles to New York's John F
Kennedy Airport on Friday when the pilot asked Christians on board to raise
their hands, Wagner said.
The pilot, whose name was not released, told the airline that he then
suggested the other passengers use the flight time to talk to the Christians
about their faith, Wagner said.
Passenger Amanda Nelligan told WCBS-TV of New York that the pilot called
non-Christians "crazy" and that his comments "felt like a threat". She said
she and several others aboard were so worried they tried to call relatives
on their cell phones before flight attendants assured them they were safe
and that people on the ground had been notified about the pilot's comments.
The pilot also told passengers he would be available for discussion at the
end of the flight. Wagner said the pilot had just returned to work from a
week long mission trip to Costa Rica.
Because of privacy issues, there would likely never be any announcement
about what kind of punishment or reprimand the pilot may face, Wagner said.
The pilot was not scheduled to fly during the weekend, he said.