Flight forced to make emergency landing after pilot dies in the sky

The 59-year-old fell ill and first aid was administered but he could not be saved.

A pilot has died during a flight - meaning his co-pilot on the aircraft they were flying to Europe from the States was forced to make an emergency landing.

The drama unfolded at around 7pm yesterday afternoon on a Turkish Airlines service which had left Seattle, in the United States of America, bound for Turkey.

It was scheduled to touch down in Istanbul, but had to make an emergency landing in New York after tragedy struck. An airline spokesman said: "The pilot of our Airbus 350... flight TK204 from Seattle to Istanbul collapsed during the flight.

"After an unsuccessful attempt to give first aid, the flight crew of another pilot and a co-pilot decided to make an emergency landing, but he died before landing."

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The spokesman said the 59-year-old pilot, who was not named, had worked for Turkish Airlines since 2007. They added he had passed a medical examination in March, which gave no indication of any health problems.

The Mirror reports the spokesman added: "We wish God's mercy upon our captain and patience to his grieving family, all his colleagues and loved ones."

It is not clear how many passengers were onboard at the time. It landed successfully at JFK airport in New York shortly before 6am local time today (about 11am BST).

The original flight from Seattle to Istanbul should have taken around 11 hours. The Turkish Airline plane was diverted after around eight hours flying time.

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