JetBlue plane makes emergency landing after pilot suffers mid-air meltdown

AP

A JetBlue flight from New York to Las Vegas made an emergency landing after the captain had a "medical situation" and had to be restrained after yelling about terrorism, Al Qaeda and a bomb on board.

The pilot had to be wrestled to the floor by passengers and locked out of the cockpit, after he was seen banging on the door shouting: "I need the code, gimme the code", according to the Metro.

Passengers reported that Captain Clayton Frederick Osbon, 49, screamed: "Say your prayers, say your prayers", and ran up and down the aisle shouting, "Iraq, al-Qaeda, terrorism, we're all going down!"

Gabriel Schoneit who was in the third row told the Mirror: "It seemed like he went crazy."

A flight attendant called for passengers to "restrain him", and he was taken down by four men, including a retired NYPD sergeant.

An off-duty pilot who was on board helped the plane make an emergency landing after it diverted to Amarillo, Texas.

The incident happened around three hours after Flight 191 took off from New York's JFK Airport, according to the Telegraph.

In a statement, JetBlue said there had been a "medical situation involving the captain", adding: "Another captain, traveling off duty, entered the flight deck prior to landing at Amarillo and took over the duties of the ill crew member once on the ground."

Captain Osbon was put on a stretcher upon landing at the Rick Husband Amarillo Airport and taken to hospital for evaluation.

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