In a Utah courtroom on Thursday, lawyers sparred over differing accounts of a brawl between two pilots of commercial airlines, during which the co-pilot allegedly threatened to shoot the captain for suggesting they divert the aircraft due to a medical issue involving a passenger.
Jonathan J. Dunn, 42, a former pilot for Delta Air Lines, appeared in federal court for the first time on Thursday in Salt Lake City. On October 18, 2023, a grand jury indicted him on charges of interfering with a flight crew. Former Utah’s top federal prosecutor, John W. Huber, who represents him, attempted to characterize the altercation as “a misunderstanding,” but the prosecution labelled it a “grave offence.”
Dunn was the first officer, or co-pilot, on a trip from Atlanta to Salt Lake City in 2022 when a heated disagreement broke out in the cockpit.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the captain—who is not identified in court records—had suggested that if the passenger’s illness got worse, they should take a commercial trip to Grand Junction, Colorado. According to the records, Dunn resisted and threatened to shoot the captain many times, calling him “mad.”
Dunn might spend up to 20 years in jail if found guilty. March 12 is when Judge Jared C. Bennett scheduled his trial.
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