It should have been a routine New York-Las Vegas flight last March 27.
The passengers of the Jet Blue flight (most of whom were traveling to the 2012 International Security Conference, ironically enough) were startled to see pilot Clayton Osbon running through the aisle screaming "say your prayers" as well as various threats relating to 9/11, al Qaeda, Iraq and Afghanistan. After having been locked out of the cabin cockpit due to his attempting to interfere with the plane's controls, the pilot was eventually wrestled to the ground and forcibly restrained by several of the passengers. The plane then made an emergency landing in Amarillo, Texas. Although one flight attendant's ribs were bruised, no one on board the plane was seriously injured.
Following the incident, Jet Blue Airlines representatives were at a loss to explain the 49-year old pilot's behaviour. Captain Osbon, a veteran pilot with no history of psychiatric problems was later charged with interference with a flight crew. During the course of his competency hearing, the court heard from testimony provided by fellow crew members who said that the pilot showed up at the airport unusually late for the flight. They also added that his bizarre behaviour did not begin until the plane was in midflight. The first officer became alarmed when Captain Osbon began rambling about sins in Las Vegas and that the plane would not reach its destination. The situation escalated after he was locked out of the cockpit and "aggressively" confronted crew members who attempted to restrain him. The court also heard testimony from a psychologist, Robert E.H. Johnson who determined that the defendant's actions on board the Jet Blue flight was due to a "brief psychotic disorder" resulting from sleep deprivation. Dr. Johnson added in his report that the defendant's psychotic behaviour lasted about a week following the March 27 incident. The U.S. Attorney's office did not dispute the psychological assessment report although a Jet Blue spokesperson argued that the pilot had sufficient off-time and that their scheduling did not cause the incident.
Despite the not guilty verdict, Jet Blue underwent a format review by the Federal Aviation Authority to determine whether current guidelines concerning the amount of rest that a pilot should have between flights is enough to prevent problems. While new guidelines soon went into effect requiring a minimum 10-hour rest period for pilots (up from theprevious eight to nine hours required at present), questions about what happened aboard that flight still remain.
But can sleep deprivation cause a psychotic breakdown? Along with documented cases of extreme manic behaviour and delirious psychosis resulting from sleep loss, research studies have shown a consistent link between sleep deprivation and impaired cognitive and emotional functioning. A 2007 study by a team of Princeton researchers has indicated that lack of sleep can impact the limbic system of the brain and interfere with the body's ability to form new memories. The researchers also found that sleep-deprived animals had higher levels of stress-related hormones and significantly fewer new brain cells in the hypothalamus. Research has also found that the effects of sleep deprivation are typically cumulative, i.e., one night of lost sleep is harmless but two or more nights of lost sleep can have a dramatic impact on cognitive functioning and response inhibition. While the effects of sleep deprivation are usually temporary, long-term sleep deprivation has been linked to chronic mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, mood disorders, and manic episodes. Considering the devastating impact that lack of sleep can have, it's probably not surprising that sleep deprivation is an effective interrogation method (with numerous court trials held to determine whether it can be considered a form of torture).
As for Captain Clayton Osbon, he was eventually found not guilty by reasoning of insanity in a Texas court on July 3, 2012. After being remanded to a psychiatric hospital, he was eventually released into the care of his family on the condition that he continue treatment. "This is a bad situation for you and your family, but you are very fortunate to have the type of immediate support you have," said Judge Mary Lou Robinson. He remains on probation and will likely remain so for the immediate future. In 2015, shortly after the deadly Germanwings Flight 9525 crash in which a co-pilot deliberately crashed the plane killing all the people aboard, passengers filed a class-action lawsuit against JetBlue. Though a settlement was reached, no details have been released to the public.
As for the question of how similar aviation incidents can be prevented in future, that is still very much up in the air.
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