First Officer Becomes Incapacitated on Approach to Detroit

#aviation #pilot #airtrafficcontrol On May 23, 2026, Endeavor Air Flight 5245 was approaching Detroit when the first officer suddenly became incapacitated and briefly lost consciousness. The captain declared a medical emergency, continued the approach, and safely landed the aircraft while managing the cockpit and communicating with air traffic control essentially on his own. In this episode, retired airline captain and naval aviator Captain Steeeve reacts to the original ATC audio and explains what happens when one pilot becomes incapacitated, how cockpit responsibilities immediately change, and why two-pilot redundancy is so important during high-workload phases of flight like approach and landing. The first officer later regained consciousness and was taken for medical evaluation. #aviation #pilot #airtrafficcontrol #atc #endeavorair #delta #crj #medicalemergency #pilotincapacitation #detroit #captainsteeeve