Continental Pilot Dies Mid-Flight; Plane Lands Safely

The pilot of a Continental Airlines flight from Brussels to Newark died over the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday, but the jet landed safely with two co-pilots at the controls.

David J. Phillip / AP Continental Airlines planes at Houston Intercontinental Airport.

The 247 passengers aboard Flight 61 weren't told of the pilot's death and flight attendants continued serving snacks, though the crew did ask for the help of any doctors aboard. Several passengers approached the cockpit, including one doctor who told The Associated Press the pilot appeared to have suffered a heart attack.

The 60-year-old Newark-based pilot, who worked for Continental for 32 years, is believed to have died of natural causes, said Kelly Cripe, a spokeswoman for the Houston-based airline.

A relief pilot was on board and took the place of the deceased pilot, Cripe said. The Boeing 777 touched down on time just before noon at Newark Liberty International Airport.

"The flight continued safely with two pilots at the controls," Cripe said in a statement.

Dr. Julien Struyven, 72, a cardiologist and radiologist from Brussels who was aboard, responded to the call for doctors, went to the cockpit and examined the pilot.

"He was not alive," Struyven said. There was "no chance at all" of saving him, he said.

Struyven said he suspected the pilot had a heart attack. He said he used a defibrillator to try to revive the pilot, but it was too late.

Tom Donaldson, a former leader of the Continental pilots' union who currently flies Boeing 767 jets for the airline, said pilots must pass an extensive physical every six months to remain qualified to fly. The exam includes an electrocardiogram, blood pressure check and an eye test.

Martha Love, a passenger from Greenwich, N.J., who was sitting in the first row of the plane, said passengers weren't told exactly what was going on.

"No one knew," she said. She only became concerned after the plane landed, when she saw fire trucks and emergency vehicles lined up along the runway.

Simon Shapiro, a passenger from New York City's Brooklyn borough, was also unaware of the drama.

"I didn't hear anything or see anything," Shapiro said. "I was wondering why there were so many cops."

As a precaution, the airport's emergency crews were sent to meet the plane.

Passenger Kathleen Ledger, 45, of Bethlehem, Pa., said she learned about what happened when her cell phone rang after the plane landed.

"My husband called me and told me," she said.

She said she was impressed with the way the flight crew handled themselves — including serving snacks during the crisis — and doesn't think passengers should have been informed of the death during the flight.

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"They did an incredible job," she said. "I would have done the exact same thing."

In 2007, another Continental pilot died at the controls after becoming ill during a flight from Houston to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. It landed safely with a co-pilot at the controls after being diverted to McAllen-Miller International Airport in southern Texas.

Donaldson said a third pilot is on board for long trans-Atlantic flights in case the captain or first officer becomes tired. He said there is no specific training on how to react when a crew member becomes incapacitated, but either member of a two-pilot crew can fly the plane.

"Clearly you want another set of eyes watching when you're going down a checklist, but you're capable of flying the airplane yourself," he said. "You can put the gears down, put the flaps down and carry out your other duties by yourself in an emergency."

Separately, an aircraft with 89 people on board taking off from Boston's Logan International Airport narrowly missed a truck on the runway Thursday, in an incident described by airport authorities as "serious."

US Airways Group Inc Flight 27 to Phoenix was taking off at 6:36 a.m. when a vehicle driven by an outside contractor working at the airport drove across the runway, airport spokesman Phil Orlandella said.

Airport authorities stripped the driver of his right to drive in the airport. The flight landed safely in Phoenix.

The Boston Globe reported that the airplane missed the truck by seconds, quoting an airport official as saying the incident was serious and would be investigated.

—Reuters contributed to this report

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