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'So many people loved him' - family pays tribute to airline employee who stole passenger plane and crashed it

The man who stole the plane has now been identified as 29-year-old Richard Russell.

Stolen Airplane Family and friends of Richard Russell console each other after making a statement to the media Bettina Hansen / AP Bettina Hansen / AP / AP

INVESTIGATORS ARE PIECING together how an airline ground agent stole an empty commercial airplane, took off from Sea-Tac International Airport in Washington state and crashed into a small island in the Puget Sound after being chased by military jets that were quickly scrambled to intercept the aircraft.

Officials say that the man, now named as Richard Russell, was a 3.5-year Horizon Airlines employee and had clearance to be among aircraft, but that to their knowledge, he wasn’t a licensed pilot.

2 Richard Russell

The 29-year-old used a machine called a pushback tractor to first manoeuvre the aircraft, which was in a maintenance area, so he could board and then take off on Friday evening, authorities said.

Russell’s family have now spoken and expressed their ‘shock’ regarding the incident.

‘Complete shock’

In a statement, the family said that Russell, whose nickname was “Beebo,” was warm, kind and gentle. They said what had happened was a complete shock.

They said they are stunned and heartbroken. They referenced the recordings of him talking to air traffic controllers and said that it’s clear Russell didn’t intend to harm anyone and “he was right in saying that there are so many people who loved him”.

Video showed the Horizon Air Q400, a turboprop plane that seats 76 people, doing large loops and other dangerous manoeuvres as the sun set on Puget Sound.

Two F-15C aircraft were scrambled from Portland and pursued the plane but authorities say they didn’t fire on it before it crashed on tiny Ketron Island, southwest of Tacoma, Washington.

Video showed fiery flames amid trees on the island, which is sparsely populated and only accessible by ferry. No structures on the ground were damaged by the plane, which sparked a small wildfire.

Stolen Airplane Friends of Russell address the media at the Orting Valley Police and Fire Department Bettina Hansen / AP Bettina Hansen / AP / AP

“It is highly fragmented,” Debra Eckrote, the Western Pacific regional chief for the National Transportation Safety Board, said of the plane. “The wings are off, the fuselage is, I think, kind of positioned upside down.”

Investigators expect they will be able to recover both the cockpit voice recorder and the event data recorder from the plane.

Russell is presumed to have died in the crash.

He could be heard on audio recordings telling air traffic controllers that he is “just a broken guy.”

An air traffic controller tried to convince him to land the airplane.

“There is a runway just off to your right side in about a mile,” the controller says, referring to an airfield at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

‘Just a broken guy’

“Oh man. Those guys will rough me up if I try and land there,” the man responded, later adding “This is probably jail time for life, huh?”

Later the man said: “I’ve got a lot of people that care about me. It’s going to disappoint them to hear that I did this… Just a broken guy, got a few screws loose, I guess.”

Stolen Airplane Still taken from video of Courtney Junka of the stolen plane flying over Eatonville, Washington AP AP

Horizon Air is part of Alaska Air Group and flies shorter routes throughout the US West. The Q400 is a turboprop aircraft with 76 seats.

At a news conference in Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, officials from Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air said that they are still working with authorities as they investigate what happened.

“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,” said Brad Tilden, CEO of Alaska Airlines.

The bizarre incident involving a worker who authorities said was suicidal points to one of the biggest potential perils for commercial air travel: airline or airport employees causing mayhem.

“The greatest threat we have to aviation is the insider threat,” Erroll Southers, a former FBI agent and transportation security expert, told the AP.

Manka Dhingra Smoke rises over Ketron Island, where the plane eventually crashed Ted S. Warren / AP Ted S. Warren / AP / AP

 

“Here we have an employee who was vetted to the level to have access to the aircraft and had a skill set proficient enough to take off with that plane.”

Ground service agents direct aircraft for takeoff and gate approach and de-ice planes, as well as handle baggage.

‘No connection to terrorism’

There was no connection to terrorism, said Ed Troyer, a spokesman for the sheriff’s department.

Coaches at Wasilla High School in Alaska, where Russell was a football player, wrestler and discus thrower, told the Anchorage Daily News they are shocked at the news.

Beebo Russell / YouTube

Track and field coach Gary Howell said he was “absolutely the kind of kid you want on your team.”

“He had that energy, that vibrance,” Howell said. “He was that kid you high-five in the hallway even if you don’t know him.”

On social media pages, Russell said he lived in Sumner, Washington, and was married in 2012.

In a humorous YouTube video he posted last year, he talked about his job and included videos and photos of his various travels.

“I lift a lot of bags. Like a lot of bags. So many bags,” he said.

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    Mute Daniel Morrissey
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    Apr 17th 2021, 12:20 AM

    Roll on the 26th change…. yawn…

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    Mute Anna Carr
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    Apr 17th 2021, 12:56 AM

    @Daniel Morrissey: lol. I know how you feel. How many bloomin people over 65 are in the country. They seem to go on forever hahaha

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    Mute Peter McGlynn
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    Apr 17th 2021, 1:12 AM

    @Anna Carr: I don’t know how many. How many people voted Fianna Fáil? In or around that amount.

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    Mute Ger
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    Apr 17th 2021, 3:06 AM

    @Anna Carr: it literally tells you in the article

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    Mute Paul Gorry
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    Apr 17th 2021, 3:16 AM

    @Ger: ah lighten up ger her comment was tongue in cheek jayus what are you not seeing there?

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 17th 2021, 5:13 AM

    @Daniel Morrissey: well yeah, can’t make them deliver it faster or make it ourselves so that’s what we have to do.

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    Mute Anto Curran
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    Apr 17th 2021, 8:00 AM

    @Peter McGlynn: obsessed with FF. Unless you’re playing an online game where you can try to fit FF into every comments section?

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    Mute Barbara Stewart
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    Apr 17th 2021, 11:55 AM

    @Anna Carr: Sorry for being 69 and delaying your vaccination….I could have said the same about all over 70s but I have a bit more respect!!!

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    Mute Tony Humphreys
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    Apr 17th 2021, 1:54 AM

    You lost me at the word ‘plan’. I always thought they there was only one plan – lockdown. Why do something when you can get away with nothing.

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 17th 2021, 5:14 AM

    @Tony Humphreys: well you thought wrong and then refused to think about it anymore

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    Mute Keith Richardson
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    Apr 17th 2021, 1:54 PM

    @Dave O’Keeffe: well there is no published plan on reopening. I’m sure there’s one on a desk somewhere. If people were treated like adults and told this then there would be increased confidence.

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 18th 2021, 5:32 AM

    @Keith Richardson: no, if there was a widely publicised plan with an unpredictable pandemic and unreliable delivery schedules any changes would undermine the confidence you claim it would bring.

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    Mute Tarraing Mo Liathróidí
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    Apr 17th 2021, 8:02 AM

    The fact we still likely won’t restart tourism and hospitality till June or July is just mind boggling, especially given the fact MM despite some who said it was lies when I pointed out that leaky Leo said the same thing, that he can’t say we won’t go into another lockdown after this one. And given the fact the hse management seem to have done nothing except allow the waiting list balloon and get themselves a pay rise, any extra surge from even a few covid cases over the winter months makes this likely since they now have a great excuse to cover up they barely cope any winter before covid hit. So this means a lot of small businesses and retail included as well may only have a small window to open and make some much needed money, meanwhile north will be full steam ahead open end of May.

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    Mute Siobhan Rosemary
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    Apr 17th 2021, 8:35 AM

    So the AstraZeneca isnt safe to use on under 60s but is safe for under 60s who received 1st dose?? Think il pass on the second thanks. Back of the que I go lol

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 18th 2021, 5:34 AM

    @Siobhan Rosemary: that silly. 1 in a million died of a blood clot that nobody knew to be looking for. That’s different now. 12 in a million died of covid here and doctors were definitely looking for it.

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    Mute K Flan
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    Apr 17th 2021, 11:26 AM

    2 more weeks to flatten the curve

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 18th 2021, 5:35 AM

    @K Flan: the curve is flattened. Sadly the base rate is still over 300 cases per day.

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    Mute Sean Callan
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    Apr 17th 2021, 7:26 AM

    Boring boring boring all this lot has to offer

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