someone can simply take a passenger plane from a major U.S. airport without authorization, push us to learn what we can from this tragedy. 2018 Horizon Air Q400 incident - Wikipedia Russells family released a statement to the news media expressing great shock and remembering Russell for his compassion. "Its chilling listening to this young man. Sea-Tac airport confirmed the plane was down a short time later. They owned a bakery shop and settled down in Sumner, Washington, in 2015, which is when he got his job at Horizon Air. Russell says on the blog that he liked his job because it allowed him to travel back to Alaska to see his family. Its going to disappoint them to hear that I did this just a broken guy, got a few screws loose, I guess.". Russell does not appear to have had any pilot training. The hardest part of stealing a commercial plane from an international airport was already over for Richard Russell. As a flight controller tried to persuade him to land, he wondered aloud about whether he had enough fuel to make it to the Olympics, talked of the beautiful view, and said he had a lot of people who cared about him, apologizing for what he was doing. On Friday, 29-year-old Richard Russell, a ground employee at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, managed to sneak onto an empty commercial aircraft and took it for an . But another posting, again for Russells communications class, hinted at a dissatisfaction with his job, albeit one thats common in many workplaces. It was his childhood friend, Richard Russell, talking to air traffic controllers, a conversation that was then broadcast all over the world. He then boards an empty 70-seater plane and took off. At a news conference on Saturday, the chief executive of Horizon Air Industries, Gary Beck, said Mr. Russell did not have a pilots license. They are grounding all planes and waiting. Rolling out of bed and hearing his voice, Fan recalled, My initial reaction was oh what kind of prank is he playing. Richard Russell Plane Crash Video From Seattle | Heavy.com I hope they can make it through this. He said that airline employees go through background checks. Writing in the blog two years ago, Russell celebrated his job at Horizon Air. An airline employee stole an empty plane that he eventually crashed into an island near Seattle's Sea-Tac airport. A 2012 article in the World described how Russell met his wife. I played video games before so, you know, I know what Im doing a little bit., Man, Im sorry about this. His plane, a Piper . "In this season of life, we enjoy exploring as much as possible, whether its a day (or so) trip to one of Alaska Airlines destinations or visiting a new area of Washington," he wrote. In the statement where it says its a complete shock, its just 100 percent true, Odell said. Yay air force . Here's how. Alaska Airlines (@AlaskaAir) August 11, 2018, People posted photos and videos to Twitter of a plume of smoke and possible crash site. No one else was believed to be on board, and officials confirmed Mr. Russell was killed. I wouldnt want to do that. We were married one year later, and one month after that we opened a bakery which we successfully ran for 3 years, he explained on his website of his wife. I think I might mess something up there too. Pilots wonder how plane thief learned to do aerial acrobatics, Sea-Tac Airport's security challenge: 12,600 people have access to aircraft, Sea-Tac officials, airlines to meet Monday to discuss security protocols after turboprop heist, "We were all screaming, 'Oh my god": How the Horizon Air theft and crash unfolded, Sea-Tac air traffic controller faced 'one in a million' scenario with stolen plane, SeaTacs much-publicized $15 an hour minimum wage. Hey all! Pilots kept plane out of harms way and people on ground safe. In his call to air traffic controllers, the man also described himself as having a "few screws loose" but didn't realise until now. "You think if I land this successfully, Alaska will give me a job as a pilot?" bit.ly/subAIRBOYD Various scanner recordings from liveatc.net and broadcastify.com SEA Ground, Tower, Departure/Approach. In what appears to be his personal blog, Russell described himself as a native of Key West, Florida, who moved to Alaska at age seven. At another point, Richard Russell said, Im down to 2100; I started at like 30-something.. The Pierce County Sheriff wrote on Twitter, Stolen horizon airplane crashed into Ketron island. pic.twitter.com/ziBAYv7cgn, Jimmy Thomson (@jwsthomson) August 11, 2018. He said he met "Hannah" in Coos Bay, Oregon and, in 2011, the pair got married. The Russell he knew had always been a jokester, the class clown. Richard Russell Plane Crash Video From Seattle, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. Sea-Tac Airport (@SeaTacAirport) August 11, 2018. Russell also mentions his job at Horizon in the blog. Below are some of the clips. As the voice recordings show, Beebos intent was not to harm anyone. Horizon airline employee, 28-year-old Richard 'Bebo' Russell, stole a plane and took off before crashing into remote Pierce County island Seattle ground Horizon guy. Mr. Russell stole a plane from the airport and flew it for about an hour before it crashed. Here's what we know about the mechanic who joked with air traffic controllers before crashing the jet into a small island. "Last night's event is going to push us to learn what we can from this tragedy so that we can ensure this does not happen again at Alaska Air Group or at any other airline," Brad Tilden, CEO of Alaska Airlines, told a news conference Saturday. A friend wrote on Facebook, So heart brokenhe was such a kind person to me. Richard Russell was a suicidal airport ground services worker who stole an airplane from Sea-Tac International Airport in Seattle, Washington, and took it on a dramatic unauthorized flight,.