Emergency landing at JFK after Turkish Airlines pilot dies midflight

(NEW YORK) — A Turkish Airlines flight diverted to New York on Wednesday morning after one of its pilots died.

Flight 204 was traveling from Seattle to Istanbul when it was diverted to John F. Kennedy International Airport for an emergency landing at approximately 6 a.m. after “one of the pilots suffered a medical emergency,” according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Capt. İlçehin Pehlivan “lost consciousness” during the flight, and after initial medical intervention proved ineffective, the co-pilot was rerouted to JFK, where the Airbus A350 safely landed, the airline said in a statement.

Turkish Airlines also confirmed that Pehlivan died before the plane touched ground. Since it was a long-haul international flight, two other pilots were on board at the time.

Upon landing, the aircraft was met by emergency personnel, according to airport authorities.

Pehlivan, 59, had been working for Turkish Airlines since 2009. His last routine health check was performed on March 8, 2024, and no health issues were detected that would have prevented him from carrying out his duties as a pilot, according to the airline.

Yahya Üstün, senior vice president of media relations at Turkish Airlines, expressed his condolences in a post on X, saying, “We deeply feel the loss of our captain and extend our sincerest condolences to his bereaved family, colleagues, and all his loved ones.”

The airline said it is making arrangements to rebook the affected passengers on new flights from New York.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified the diverted aircraft as an Airbus A320. It was an Airbus A350.

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