JetBlue passengers sue airline over pilot Clayton Osbon’s midair meltdown
In this handout from the Randall County Sheriff’s Office, JetBlue pilot Clayton Osbon is seen April 2, in Amerillo, Texas.
Passengers aboard a JetBlue flight on which the captain abandoned the controls and ran through the cabin "yelling about September 11th, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda and terrorists," are suing the airline, according to the Associated Press.
The 10 plaintiffs, from the New York City area, claim in the lawsuit filed in State Supreme Court in Queens that the airline was "grossly negligent" in allowing Capt. Clayton Osbon to fly.
The claim they feared for their lives and that the airline knew, or should have known, that Osbon was unfit to fly an aircraft, and are seeking unspecified damages for emotional distress.
According to CNN, the lawsuit specified that Osbon's hysterical rants on the from New York-to-Las Vegas flight — including "Say your prayers," "We're all going down," "I'm going to show you Iraq and Iran right now," and "There's a bomb on board" — caused the passengers significant distress.
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Osbon was eventually subdued and restrained, and the jet made an emergency landing in Amarillo, Texas.
A JetBlue spokeswoman told the LA Times that airlines did not comment on pending litigation.
Osbon, meantime, faces federal charges of interfering with a flight crew which carry a 20 year sentence.
A hearing Friday morning in Amarillo will determine if he is competent to stand trial, the Times reported.
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