A recently hired Envoy Air pilot collapsed and died suddenly just after takeoff from Chicago O’Hare International Airport en route to Columbus, Ohio.
Captain Patrick Ford of the American Eagle Embraer 175 passed out at the controls at 7:59 p.m. on Saturday, November 19, shortly after the plane had taken off from the runway, Alex Berenson reported.
A recording of the incident shows that Captain Ford was talking to an air traffic controller when his voice suddenly stopped.
ENY3556: Tower, Envoy 3556…
A few seconds later, the controller asked anxiously, “Can I help you?”
“…3556, we need to return, captain is incapacitated,” Ford’s copilot, Captain Brandon Hendrickson, told air traffic control about 30 minutes after take-off from the airport.
Captain Hendrickson took control of the plane and managed to land safely.
Ford was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
His cause of death was not immediately released.
The vice president of flight operations at Envoy Air released a statement following the incident.
“Despite heroic efforts to revive him, Captain in training, Patrick Ford, passed away,” Ric Wilson, the Vice President of Flight Operations at Envoy Air, said in a message to fellow pilots. “We are deeply saddened by this loss.”
“Sincere thanks to Line Check Airman, Captain Brandon Hendrickson, for his leadership and professionalism in the safe handling of his aircraft, passengers, and crew,” Wilson continued.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has opened an investigation regarding the incident.
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