I'm From The Government And I'm Here To Help

Like most passengers on a commercial airlines flight, Lt. Col. Scott Neumann probably expected a long, uneventful flight from Dulles International Airport in Washington, DC, to Los Angeles. Boy, was he wrong.
 
Here's the FAA's version of what happened:

IDENTIFICATION
 Regis#: AAL149    Make/Model: B738   Description: 737-800
 Date: 11/09/2004   Time: 1657
 Event Type: Incident  Highest Injury: None   Mid Air: N  Missing: N
 Damage: None
LOCATION
 City: COLORADO SPRINGS      State: CO  Country: US

DESCRIPTION
AMERICAN AIRLINES, AAL-149, A BOEING B-738 ACFT, DECLARED A MEDICAL EMERGENCY AFTER A CREW MEMBER EXPERIENCED A SEIZURE, THE ACFT DIVERTED AND LANDED WITHOUT INCIDENT, COLORADO SPRINGS, CO

INJURY DATA   Total Fatal:  0
         # Crew:  0   Fat:  0   Ser:  0   Min:  0   Unk: 
         # Pass:  0    Fat:  0   Ser:  0   Min:  0   Unk: 
         # Grnd:        Fat:  0   Ser:  0   Min:  0   Unk: 
WEATHER: KCOS METAR 091653Z AUTO 19017KT 10SM CLR A2999              
OTHER DATA
 Activity: Business   Phase: Unknown   Operation: Air Carrier
 Departed: WASH, DC DULLES       Dep Date: 11/09/2004  Dep. Time:  
 Destination: LOS ANGELES, CA     Flt Plan: IFR     Wx Briefing: U
 Last Radio Cont: 2 M FINAL  Last Clearance: CLRD TO LAND
 FAA FSDO: DENVER, CO (NM03)          Entry date: 11/10/2004

And Now... The Rest Of The Story

Neumann (pictured right at the controls of a B-1B as a major in 1998, in the only photo of him we could find), deputy commander for the 412th Operations Group at Edwards Air Force Base, CA, had just wrapped up a semi-annual meeting with the National Aeronautic Association contest and records board and was settled into his seat in coach class for his coast-to-coast trip Tuesday.
 
During the flight, he'd struck up a conversation with one of the flight attendants. He shared that he'd been a test pilot for the B-2 and other aircraft.
 
With small talk aside, the flight attendant went about her business and so did Colonel Neumann -- but not for long. "About one and a half hours into the flight, the flight attendant made an announcement requesting a doctor or nurse," he said. Then she gathered up the airliner's medical equipment, oxygen bottle and headed toward the cockpit. The First Officer was having a seizure.
 
The pilot had struggled to restrain the seizing co-pilot as he requested assistance and piloted the aircraft during the episode.
 
A nurse who was a passenger behind Colonel Neumann responded to the request for assistance. And when the call came out for a couple of strong able bodies, Colonel Neumann and a fellow traveler stepped forward. They moved the First Officer into the forward galley to allow the nurse to treat his symptoms.
 
The 737's pilot, now without a First Officer, decided an emergency divert to Colorado Springs Airport was in order. The flight attendant told him about Colonel Neumann's experience as a test pilot.
 
"You'll do," the captain told the colonel. So Colonel Neumann moved from coach to better than first class. New to the 737 airframe, Colonel Neumann said he helped the pilot run checklists and land the plane.
 
Upon arrival in Colorado Springs, just after 1000, a medical crew arrived to assist the First Officer.
 
"Whenever there's an emergency at the airport, we're part of a joint response with AMR [American Medical Response] and Colorado Springs Fire Department teams," said Technical Sgt. Chancey Cruger, lead medical responder for the Peterson AFB crew. He led Staff Sgts. Jason Linta and Frank Poyner, and Senior Airman Eric Schrager, a reservist who is also a Colorado Springs firefighter.
 
"They were on board as soon as the door was opened and immediately began giving emergency medical care to the co-pilot," Colonel Neumann said.
 
As the first responders on scene, the Team Pete crew assessed the situation and put their well-honed training to work.
 
"He was conscious but not coherent," Sergeant Cruger said. They worked together to stabilize the co-pilot, asking him basic questions, taking vitals and checking blood sugars.
The AMR team arrived and transported the co-pilot to Memorial Hospital in Colorado Springs. His condition is unknown.

After their patient departed, Sergeant Cruger and his crew stayed behind to help the flight attendants clean up the mess, which included blood. "The flight attendant said they'd clean it up, but we have the equipment to do the job right," Sergeant Cruger said. "That way they're not exposed to any blood-borne illnesses."
 
As witness to the entire medical response, Colonel Neumann offered high praise for the medical response crew from Team Pete. "They were very professional and did an outstanding job," he said. "I can't think of a better way for the passengers of the aircraft to see their Air Force in action than to watch those fire department rescuers caring for the co-pilot."
 
Unfortunately, Colonel Neumann's eventful flight led to a crew and aircraft change in what was to be a non-stop flight to Los Angeles. Given his involvement, the colonel was late in arriving to the ticket counter to get onto the new flight. The new aircraft was booked solid.
 
He said the ticketing agent asked if he'd been the one who co-piloted after the emergency. Upon confirmation, the agent booked him a first-class seat. "Not quite as good as the one I had," Colonel Neumann said.
 
On the plus side, the emergency allowed the test pilot to log in "two or three tenths of an hour in a 737," he said. It might not seem like much when compared to the stick time he has with the B-2, B-1, F-16, KC-135, C-12, and C-130 airframes.

"But this will be a lot more memorable," he said. [ANN Thanks Senior Master Sgt. Ty Foster for the story, and Staff Sgt. Denise Johnson, USAF, 21st Space Wing Public Affairs, for the additional verification.]

FMI: www.af.mil