Airman takes co-pilot\'s stick during in-flight
Tough way to get some stick time!!
Like most passengers on a commercial airlines flight, Lt. Col. Scott Neumann probably expected a long, uneventful flight from Dulles International Airport in Washington to Los Angeles.
Boy, was he wrong.
The deputy commander for the 412th Operations Group at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., had just wrapped up a semiannual National Aeronautic Association meeting and was settled into his seat in coach class for his coast-to-coast trip Nov. 9.
During the flight, he had struck up a conversation with one of the flight attendants. He shared that he had been a test pilot for the B-2 Spirit and other aircraft.
With small talk aside, the flight attendant went about her business, and so did Colonel Neumann -- but not for long.
"About one and a half hours into the flight, the flight attendant made an announcement requesting a doctor or nurse," he said. Then she gathered up the airliner's medical equipment and an oxygen bottle and headed toward the cockpit.
The co-pilot was having a seizure.
The pilot, an airline captain, had struggled to restrain the seizing co-pilot as he sought help and piloted the aircraft during the episode.
A nurse who was a passenger behind Colonel Neumann responded to the request for assistance. And when the call came out for a couple of strong, able bodies, Colonel Neumann and a fellow traveler stepped forward.
They moved the co-pilot into the forward galley to allow the nurse to treat his symptoms.
The 737's pilot, now without a co-pilot, decided to divert to Colorado Springs Airport. The flight attendant told him about Colonel Neumann's experience as a test pilot.
"You'll do," the captain told the colonel. So Colonel Neumann moved from coach to better than first class. Despite being new to the 737 airframe, Colonel Neumann said he helped the pilot run checklists and land the plane.
Upon landing in Colorado Springs just after 10 a.m., a medical crew from the base here arrived to assist the co-pilot.
Unfortunately, Colonel Neumann's eventful flight led to a crew and aircraft change in what was supposed to be a nonstop flight to Los Angeles. Given his involvement, the colonel was late in arriving to the ticket counter to get onto the new flight. The new aircraft was booked solid.
However, when the ticketing agent learned he had been the one who co-piloted the airliner after the emergency, the agent booked him a first-class seat.
"Not quite as good as the one I had," Colonel Neumann said.
On the plus side, the emergency allowed the test pilot to log in "two or three tenths of an hour in a 737," he said. It might not seem like much when compared to the stick time he has with the B-2, B-1 Lancer, F-16 Fighting Falcon, KC-135 Stratotanker, C-12 and C-130 Hercules airframes.
"But this will be a lot more memorable," he said. (Courtesy of Air Force Space Command News Service)
Tough way to get some stick time!!
Like most passengers on a commercial airlines flight, Lt. Col. Scott Neumann probably expected a long, uneventful flight from Dulles International Airport in Washington to Los Angeles.
Boy, was he wrong.
The deputy commander for the 412th Operations Group at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., had just wrapped up a semiannual National Aeronautic Association meeting and was settled into his seat in coach class for his coast-to-coast trip Nov. 9.
During the flight, he had struck up a conversation with one of the flight attendants. He shared that he had been a test pilot for the B-2 Spirit and other aircraft.
With small talk aside, the flight attendant went about her business, and so did Colonel Neumann -- but not for long.
"About one and a half hours into the flight, the flight attendant made an announcement requesting a doctor or nurse," he said. Then she gathered up the airliner's medical equipment and an oxygen bottle and headed toward the cockpit.
The co-pilot was having a seizure.
The pilot, an airline captain, had struggled to restrain the seizing co-pilot as he sought help and piloted the aircraft during the episode.
A nurse who was a passenger behind Colonel Neumann responded to the request for assistance. And when the call came out for a couple of strong, able bodies, Colonel Neumann and a fellow traveler stepped forward.
They moved the co-pilot into the forward galley to allow the nurse to treat his symptoms.
The 737's pilot, now without a co-pilot, decided to divert to Colorado Springs Airport. The flight attendant told him about Colonel Neumann's experience as a test pilot.
"You'll do," the captain told the colonel. So Colonel Neumann moved from coach to better than first class. Despite being new to the 737 airframe, Colonel Neumann said he helped the pilot run checklists and land the plane.
Upon landing in Colorado Springs just after 10 a.m., a medical crew from the base here arrived to assist the co-pilot.
Unfortunately, Colonel Neumann's eventful flight led to a crew and aircraft change in what was supposed to be a nonstop flight to Los Angeles. Given his involvement, the colonel was late in arriving to the ticket counter to get onto the new flight. The new aircraft was booked solid.
However, when the ticketing agent learned he had been the one who co-piloted the airliner after the emergency, the agent booked him a first-class seat.
"Not quite as good as the one I had," Colonel Neumann said.
On the plus side, the emergency allowed the test pilot to log in "two or three tenths of an hour in a 737," he said. It might not seem like much when compared to the stick time he has with the B-2, B-1 Lancer, F-16 Fighting Falcon, KC-135 Stratotanker, C-12 and C-130 Hercules airframes.
"But this will be a lot more memorable," he said. (Courtesy of Air Force Space Command News Service)
