Federal transportation officials are investigating an unauthorized cockpit visit by a coach for the Colorado Rockies baseball team during a flight United Airlines Charter flight last week from Denver to Toronto.
A video surfaced this week that appears to point out Rockies hitting coach Hensley Meulens, who was sitting in a pilot’s seat while the flight was at cruising altitude on April 10. It is against federal regulations for unauthorized individuals to be on the flight deck.
On the video, he will be seen and heard joking with other people within the cockpit – including an individual in a pilot’s uniform and at the least one other one that doesn’t look like an airline worker – and saying the plane was at an altitude of 35,000 feet (10,670 feet). Meter).
“I’m flying here to Toronto by plane,” says Meulens, pointing to the person in uniform sitting next to him.
“I will land the plane tonight. So relax,” he says. He then grabs the flight controls and pretends to carry them by saying, “I’ll just push this button… and it’ll go down.”
Meulens posted the video on social media and later deleted it, however it had already gone viral and was reposted, The Denver Post reported. He couldn’t immediately be reached for comment through Rocky Mountain management offices.
United have had a variety of problems in recent weeks, including some Aluminum skin falls off a plane, a Tire falls off one other during startup and an engine fire. The Federal Aviation Administration has increased its oversight of the airline, and the airline’s CEO has sought to reassure travelers that the airline is secure.
A United spokesman said the airline is conducting its own investigation into the April 10 flight. The airline said the cockpit visit was “a clear violation of our safety and operational policies” and was reported to the Federal Aviation Administration.
“We are deeply disturbed by what we see in this video, which appears to show an unauthorized person on the flight deck at cruising altitude with the autopilot engaged,” United spokesman Russell Carlton said.
The flight’s pilots have been suspended from duty while the airline investigates, Carlton said.
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Chris Mullooly said the agency is investigating but didn’t provide further details since it is an ongoing investigation.
“Federal regulations limit access to the flight deck to certain people,” he said.
The Wall Street Journal had previously reported on the cockpit visit.
Rockies officials didn’t immediately reply to emails and phone messages searching for comment. Major League Baseball said it’s aware of and monitoring the investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration.
