The pilot of a Continental Airlines flight became ill after takeoff and was later pronounced dead after the plane made an emergency landing, a company spokeswoman said.
The 210 passengers on Saturday's flight, which departed from Houston, were never in danger and the co-pilot landed the plane safely, Continental spokeswoman Macky Osorio said.
The airline said only that the pilot suffered a "serious medical problem." Continental believes the pilot died of natural causes, Osorio said. The pilot's name was not released.
The flight, bound for Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, took off from Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport and was diverted to McAllen-Miller International Airport. The flight continued to Mexico with a new crew, Osorio said.
By JOSHUA FREED AP Business Writer
For more than 25 years, the airport has celebrated the holidays with Christmas trees over its entrances. But overnight, the Port of Seattle ordered all of them removed.
The Humane Society investigated Continental after a confidential informant reported the Houston-based carrier was the only airline shipping roosters to Guam. A Humane Society investigator called the airline's cargo department and asked whether he could ship fighting roosters to Guam. He was told he could, the Humane Society reported in a letter to Continental Chairman and CEO Larry Kellner.
