A Turkish Airlines flight from the US to Turkey on Tuesday evening, October 8, 2024, made an emergency landing after the pilot died in mid-flight.
According to CBS News, Turkish Airlines flight TK204 made an emergency landing in New York after its 59-year-old pilot İlçehin Pehlivan died after the flight took off from Seattle on Tuesday evening.
A spokesperson on the airline Yahya Ustun confirmed the death of the pilot in a social media post on Wednesday, saying, that the pilot lost consciousness soon after the flight took off from Seattle.
The Airline spokesperson wrote on social media, “The pilot of our Airbus 350... flight TK204 from Seattle to Istanbul collapsed during the flight. After, an unsuccessful attempt to give first aid, the flight crew of another pilot and a co-pilot decided to make an emergency landing, but he died before landing."
Moreover, as per the map posted by FlightAware, TK204 was diverted toward New York while flying over northern Canada.
Federal Aviation Administration stated that the flight, “landed safely at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York around 6 a.m. local time on Wednesday, October 9, after one of the pilots suffered a medical emergency."
Turkish Airlines expressed grief over the loss of their captain and extended condolences to his “family, colleagues and loved ones.”
