A passenger plane spiraled into a nosedive after a teenager took control of the flight control system, according to Alaska State Troopers.
The 18-year old grabbed control of the typically 45-minute flight from Bethel, Alaska to Aniak Wednesday afternoon before other passengers overpowered him, the troopers said.
Five other people were aboard the Cessna Caravan when Jaden Lake-Kameroff left his second-row seat and took control of the plane away from the pilot, sending it into a nosedive.
“Lake-Kameroff had asked the pilot to fly the plane earlier during the flight and initially asked to sit in the unoccupied copilot seat,” a trooper told the Anchorage Daily News. “Both requests were denied by the pilot.”
Nearly five minutes later, while preparing to land the Ryan Air flight, the pilot said he felt the controls move forward when he looked over and saw the teen pushing down on the wheel. Passengers said they “thought they were going to die” aboard the plane, which troopers said was 1,500 feet in the air.
The pilot pushed the teen away and regained control with help from passengers who grabbed the man and held him down. The pilot landed the plane safely in its initial destination of Aniak, Alaska. State troopers responded and arrested Lake-Kameroff. He faces at least ten charges, including terroristic threatening and first-degree assault.
A trooper spokesman said the teen told investigators he was trying to die by suicide.
The Federal Aviation Administration was notified and may investigate.
It’s the second time a teenager has taken control of an Alaskan flight. In 2019, a 16-year old grabbed the flight controller wheel after takeoff, sending the plane into a steep climb and then a nosedive toward the ground.
