Plane heist risked hundreds of lives
An airport worker’s deranged flight in a stolen commercial jet risked hundreds of lives as he flew perilously close to highly populated areas before he crashed into a forest.
Richard Russell, 29, swiped the empty plane from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Friday and began a 75-minute flight complete with barrel rolls and a darkly comedic running commentary with air-traffic controllers trying to talk him down.
Russell declined a suggestion to land at nearby McChord Field, saying he might “mess something up” at the Air Force base.
That comment may have reflected Russell’s determination not to hurt anyone, said Peter Goelz, a former managing director with the National Transportation Safety Board.
“That was telling, but the truth is that on any one of his maneuvers, the plane could have stalled,” Goelz told USA TODAY.
“There were any number of catastrophic things that could have gone wrong. He was not a trained pilot.”
The FBI said late Sunday that the data recorder was recovered, along with “components” of the cockpit voice recorder. The equipment was sent to the National Transportation Safety Board for processing, the FBI said.
Human remains also were found. The medical examiner’s office in Pierce County, Washington, confirmed that Russell died in the crash.
The Bombardier Q400 Russell pilfered is a turboprop – a jet engine in which a turbine drives the propeller – that seats 76 people. The plane was owned by Horizon Air, in turn owned by the company that owns Alaska Airlines.
Russell worked for the airline for 31⁄
2 years and had full credentials to be near the plane, Alaska Airlines CEO Brad Tilden said. Russell’s duties varied widely, from handling luggage and cleaning out planes to towing, de-icing and directing them toward runways and gates. He tapped some of those skills to steal the plane.
“The way planes are turned around fast is that folks multitask,” Goelz said. “That’s the way fares are kept lower.”
Russell used a vehicle on the tarmac to point the plane toward the runway. Russell, who was in uniform when he entered the plane and walked into the cockpit, didn’t need a key. He activated a series of switches to get the plane into the air.
“This is aviation in America,” Tilden said. “The doors of the airplanes are not keyed like a car. There is not an ignition key like a car. The setup in aviation in America is we secure the airfield.”
Tilden said the tragedy will push the industry to ensure that a similar incident never happens again.
Russell’s family released a statement saying they were “stunned and heartbroken.”
They described “Beebo” as a warm and compassionate man.
Goelz said what was a tragedy for the family could have ended much worse: “We are all lucky that a catastrophe for a broader number of people was avoided.”