Flight attendant helps land jetliner

SHANNON, Ireland, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- A flight attendant aboard an Air Canada passenger jet helped land the aircraft in Ireland after its co-pilot suffered a mental breakdown, officials said.

Irish aviation reports revealed the January incident, which necessitated an emergency landing at Shannon Airport, the British tabloid the Daily Mail reported Wednesday.

Witnesses told investigators the co-pilot aboard the Toronto-to-London flight, which was carrying 146 passengers, began rambling incoherently and eventually became belligerent and uncooperative. His erratic behavior forced the pilot to enlist the help of the flight crew to remove him from the cockpit and restrain him in a passenger seat.

The pilot then asked those aboard the Boeing 767 if anyone had any piloting experience, and a flight attendant with a commercial pilot's license was tapped to help land the jetliner at Shannon, the newspaper said.

Irish officials praised the flight attendant and the rest of the crew for maintaining their calm. Officials indicated the co-pilot was admitted to the acute psychiatric unit of Ennis Regional Hospital in County Claire for 11 days, the Daily Mail said.