Security footage shows man stealing plane he later crashed into a I was born in Key West, Florida, and moved to Wasilla, Alaska when I was 7. I usually have to work outsidebut it allows me to do some pretty cool things too.. Ive played some video games before.. Its burned quite a bit faster than I expected., He also said, Im gonna land it, in a safe kind of manner. KINGs Madison Wade reports. At another point, Richard Russell said, Im down to 2100; I started at like 30-something.. He moved to Coos Bay, Oregon, attending Southwestern Oregon Community College, where he met Hannah Stracener at a church gathering in 2010. Commercial aircrafts are complex machines, Mr. Beck added. On August 10, 2018, a Horizon ground operations employee by the name of Richard Bryan Russell Jr., stole a $32,000,000 Horizon Q400 airplane, N449QX, from t. Happy birthday to the man who keeps me laughing and always improves the view ? she wrote with one in 2017. It may seem difficult for those watching at home to believe, but Beebo was a warm, compassionate man, the statement read. Horizon ground-service agents are also one of the few nonunionized groups of tarmac workers at Sea-Tac. The man could be heard on audio recordings telling air traffic controllers that he is \"just a broken guy.\" An air traffic controller called him \"Rich,\" and tried to convince him to land the airplane. We talk about workplace culture, what is the culture of an organization? Russell does not appear to have had any pilot training. Oh- theyve probably got anti-aircraftnot quite ready to bring it down just yet. Potential targets included tens of thousands of fans assembling at Safeco Field, about 12 miles away, for a sold-out Pearl Jam concert just as he took off. Ed Troyer, a spokesman for the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, said on Twitter the man was suicidal and there was no connection to terrorism. This is a complete shock to us, his family wrote. I would like to apologize to each and every one of them. Fan, Russells childhood friend, remains in disbelief that his friend actually did this. Richard Russell, Who Stole Plane Near Seattle, Raises Troubling An airline employee stole an empty plane that he eventually crashed into an island near Seattle's Sea-Tac airport. Sea-Tac Airport (@SeaTacAirport) August 11, 2018. Family and friends try to reconcile Richard Russell's action with the Surveillance footage obtained by KOMO shows 28-year-old Richard Russell using a tow vehicle to pull a Horizon Air Q400 aircraft onto the tarmac before climbing into the cockpit on August 10, 2018. FBI records released in case of Alaska Airlines worker who stole plane Speaking with the Seattle Times, one of Russells former co-workers described him as a quiet, well-liked young man. 2018 Horizon Air Q400 incident - Wikipedia / CBS/AP. It's no Bellingham, WA lawmakers deadlocked as drugs ravage Snohomish County, rest of state, Woman shot in West Seattle, hours after 2 killed on Capitol Hill, Oregon tells a cautionary tale about drugs, but we're not listening, 'Airplane of opportunity'? No one noticed the plane had disappeared . My names Richard Russell, Im 27 and currently living in Sumner, WA with my incredible wife Hannah. Stay tuned., Richard Russell, Rich: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. Seattle ground Horizon guy. He remembers growing up in Wasilla, camping and video games and building forts in the woods. Airplane theft, as opposed to hijacking taking over control in flight, with passengers aboard is actually not uncommon, though it usually involves private aircraft, not commercial airliners. He also included photos of his wedding and traveling he'd done in the mountains and other sites he'd seen, including some ancient ruins. New footage shows airport worker Richard Russell steal plane His responsibilities included towing and pushing aircraft for takeoff and gate approach, de-icing them, and handling baggage. Harrowing audio revealed Russell joking with the controllers who begged him to land the 76-seater plane before it nosedived and burst into a fireball 25 miles away. He doesnt sound confident in his ability to land back at SeaTac. They dont necessarily use a key, so theres switches that they use to start the aircraft, she said. The man who stole a plane with no one else on board from the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport late Friday has been identified as Richard Russell, 29, according to two unnamed law. A man who answered the door at the Graham home of Russells mother-in-law Wednesday made it clear that the family did not intend to comment further. Mr. Russell stole a plane from the airport and flew it for about an hour before it crashed. "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," Brad Tilden, CEO of Alaska Airlines, told a news conference Saturday. My names Richard Russell, Im 27 and currently living in Sumner, WA with my incredible wife Hannah. Originally published November 9, 2018 at 10:22 am Updated November 9, 2018 at 1:24 pm "Oh man. The plane was not scheduled for a flight when Mr. Russell commandeered it. Happening right now. Officials were quick to point out that Russell, an employee of three and a half years with Alaska Airlines regional subsidiary Horizon Air, passed the background checks necessary to handle baggage and clean aircraft. The mans bizarre and ultimately doomed flight pushed fighter planes into action. Seattle-Tacoma Intl. He complimented the controller: "You are very calm, collect, poised," he said. ", Hear audio conversation leading up to Seattle plane crash. They owned a bakery shop and settled down in Sumner, Washington, in 2015, which is when he got his job at Horizon Air. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. SeaTac was the first city in the country to raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour, paving the way for much larger cities like Seattle, San Francisco and New York.