I once heard a (possibly apocryphal) story on some small carrier a long time ago wherein the captain began acting irrationally, slipping in and out of lucidity, and generally acting an ass. After the FO got the plane on the ground, the captain was rushed to the hospital and diagnosed with viral encephalitis. Could be any number of things besides generic craziness.
Kudos to the first officer who recognised the unstable mental state of the skipper and tricked him into leaving the cockpit! Great presence of mind and overall a great command candidate.
Yep, some really quick thinking on the FO's part. Of course, almost all pilots working at JetBlue were Captains at their last airline.
My JBlew buds say he was #3 on the seniority list and a CKA. By the time the NTSB (they're already in on the investigation)...gets through with this one...there are going to be a lot of airline pilots taking an annual psyche exam.
This is a very bad day for airline pilots.
Good job...uh...FO...uh..for watching your CA's back...
Did you miss the part where the man was violent and irrational? "Watching your Captain's back" is no longer an option when he becomes a threat to the safe completion of the flight. If the NTSB comes up with a brand new hoop for us to jump through every year, blaming the FO is about the most ass-backwards thing you could do.