Air Canada Passengers Pray as Plane Swerves Due to Pilot's Apparent Seizure

Panic spread through an Air Canada-operated flight after the aircraft began swerving in mid-air when its captain suffered a medical emergency.

The frightened passengers started to pray as the plane was diverted for an emergency landing in Boston, reports the New York Post.

The flight was operated by Air Canada's regional partner PAL Airlines.

It had departed Newark, New Jersey, at 12:39pm on Wednesday and was heading to Halifax, Canada, with 61 passengers on board when the incident unfolded.

Passenger Rodney McDonald said he realised something was seriously wrong when the aircraft suddenly started veering off course.

“The moment the plane swerved, I knew something was wrong because it was not turbulence,” McDonald told ABC News.

McDonald was travelling with his wife and two sons.

He said the aircraft continued to move erratically.

“The flight started swerving violently. It really felt like someone had jilted the controls and then it happened over and over again,” he added.

“And, you know, every thought goes through your mind, you start praying. My boys instantly started praying.”

According to McDonald, the captain suffered a seizure shortly after take-off.

He said the pilot was removed from the cockpit by a flight attendant as the situation escalated inside the aircraft.

The father had initially been seated away from his family on the twin-turboprop de Havilland Dash 8-400, but later rushed to assist crew members in restraining the pilot.

“Yeah, it was really horrifying,” McDonald said.

“I went back to sit with them and then realized that the pilot was out of control physically, not violently, like it was clear that he was not in control of his faculties and needed to be restrained. [We] worked to get him under control, it was a fairly strenuous 40 minutes of keeping him down and using as many seatbelts as we could to restrain his legs, arms and chest.”

Authorities were alerted to the emergency at about 1:40pm, and the aircraft landed safely at Boston Logan International Airport shortly before 2pm, according to flight tracking data.

Broadcast audio obtained by ABC News captured a report stating: “Pilot is incapacitated. Aircraft is being flown by the co-pilot.”

Air traffic controllers also warned other pilots that Runway 27 would be temporarily unavailable because of an incoming emergency aircraft.

In a statement, Air Canada confirmed that the captain experienced a medical issue during the flight.

“During the flight, the captain experienced a medical issue and was removed from the flight deck as per safety protocols,” the airline said.

“The first officer took control of the aircraft and diverted the flight to Boston, where it landed safely.”

Emergency vehicles surrounded the aircraft after landing and the plane was later towed to a gate.

After several hours on the ground, the flight departed Boston at 7:30pm and arrived safely in Halifax shortly before 9:30pm local time.