American Airlines Pilot Dies Mid-Flight

American Airlines Capt. Michael Johnston died of a heart-attack mid-flight while flying a plane Monday morning. The pilot was flying from Boston to Phoenix when the plane was forced to land in Syracuse, New York, with 147 passengers on board. Someone on the plane called into air-traffic control saying that the pilot was not breathing. Johnston's wife Betty Jean Johnston identified her husband and said the 57-year-old veteran pilot had a double-bypass heart surgery in 2006, but was otherwide in good health. The airline required Johnston to have a physical every six months to continue flying. Johnston was a father to eight kids ages 12 to 34, and would have celebrated his 35th wedding anniversary with his wife on Oct. 18.

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