Crew Asked for Doc But Kept Pilot's Death a Secret

Passengers had no clue

By Ambreen Ali, Newser User

Posted Jun 18, 2009 1:26 PM CDT

(Newser) – They didn't explain why, but the crew of Continental Flight 61 asked passengers about halfway through their flight whether there was a doctor on board. It was only when the plane landed that passengers learned their 60-year-old captain had died somewhere between Brussels and New Jersey, the Star-Ledger reports. The pilot, an airline veteran of 32 years, died of natural causes, and co-pilots safely landed the plane in Newark.

"They asked for a doctor but that could be a lot of things, a broken arm, a pregnant person," said one of the 247 passengers. "A dead pilot wasn't what I expected."

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[Quotes (1)]

This video image shows Continental Airlines flight 61 from Belgium taxing at Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark. (AP Photo/Westwood One/Metro Networks)

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They went about it the right way. I was watching TV. I didn't know what was going on. I didn't know the pilot died. - Michael Delcampo, a passenger

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Crew Asked for Doc But Kept Pilot's Death a Secret