Clayton Osbon, Who Exhibited Erratic Behavior Causing His Flight To Be Diverted, Said He Should Not Have Been Allowed To Fly

The former JetBlue pilot, who in 2012 was pilot in command of an airliner when he exhibited erratic behavior causing the flight to be diverted to Amarillo, TX on a flight from New York's Kennedy airport to Las Vegas, has sued the airline.

In a complaint filed Friday in Manhattan Federal Court, Osbon claims that a "complex partial brain seizure" was the reason he ran down the aisle of the plane screaming about terrorism and religion. He was restrained by passengers and the flight crew, and eventually found not guilty by reason of insanity of a interfering with a flight crew.

Bloomberg Business reports that the complaint holds that the airline should have judged him unfit to fly. “JetBlue failed to make any effort to ensure that Captain Osbon was fit to fly despite clear evidence and warning signs that he required immediate medical attention,” the complaint says. He reportedly missed a preflight crew briefing, did not answer his cellphone, and reported for the flight disoriented and dishevelled because of the seizure.

Osbon is seeking nearly $15 million, saying the airline's failure to ground him put the passengers at risk, caused him public embarrassment, and led to the loss of his career and reputation.

Morgan Johnston, a spokesman for New York-based JetBlue, said in a statement “We stand behind the heroic actions of the crew, who followed well-established safety and security procedures both before and during the flight.”

(Image from file)

FMI: www.nysd.uscourts.gov/site_manhattan.php