A co-pilot at the controls of a passenger jet bound for Heathrow was forcibly removed from the cockpit and bound hand and foot after he began “asking for God” 30,000 feet over the Atlantic.

Passengers aboard Air Canada’s Flight AC848 from Toronto to London on Monday said the flight officer started shouting and crying at the controls when they were less than an hour from Heathrow.

His colleagues, helped by an off-duty member of the Canadian Armed Forces, took the man out of the cockpit, apparently in the middle of a mental breakdown, tied his wrists and ankles in front of astonished passengers. He was then handcuffed to a seat while the flight diverted to Shannon airport, in the West of Ireland.

After the jet landed at Shannon with only the captain at the controls, the co-pilot was taken off the plane and put in a waiting ambulance, which took him to an acute psychiatric unit.

The 149 passengers were taken to hotels while the airline arranged for a replacement crew to take the aircraft on to Heathrow, where it landed at 4.15pm on Monday, eight hours behind schedule.

Sean Finucane, a passenger, told the Canadian broadcaster CBC that the co-pilot “was swearing and asking for God. He specifically said he wants to talk to God. He was yelling loudly but didn’t sound intoxicated When they tried to put his shoes on later, he swore and threatened people. He was very, very distressed.”

Another passenger, writing on the website flyertalk.com, said that the co-pilot was pinned down in seat 12A, a window seat in the first row of the economy class section. “It was quite an experience,” the passenger wrote. “The entire mini-cabin could hear the whole thing. Not for delicate ears. The soldier and the doctors [who were passengers] were great.”

The writer said that the flight crew were “calm and professional throughout”. Strict regulations meant that the captain, who had to fly the aircraft solo, had to wear an oxygen mask for the remainder of the flight.

The hospital where the co-pilot was being treated refused to comment yesterday, but it is understood that he was still in its psychiatric unit and that his wife was travelling to Ireland to be with him. A representative of the Canadian Pilots’ Association has also been sent to help.

The Boeing 767-333 series jet landed safely. Shannon air traffic controllers were notified by the captain that his colleague was “unwell” and he required permission to divert the flight to seek medical attention.

Officials from the Health Service Executive said that the co-pilot was assessed at the scene and taken to the acute psychiatric unit at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Ennis, Co Clare, for further assessment.

An airport spokesman confirmed that the “medical diversion” took place but there was no official emergency declared by the pilot. “The plane diverted to Shannon after a cockpit crew member became unwell. The first officer was taken to hospital and the passengers were taken to local hotels,” he said.

Air Canada said in a statement: “The captain and crew of AC848 followed standard operating procedures in light of the co-pilot falling ill. The captain elected to divert to Shannon and landed without incident. At no time was safety compromised.”

The airline refused to comment on the nature of his illness except to say: “The flight was met by medical personnel and the individual is now in hospital care. We do not provide additional details of a personal nature.”

The Air Canada Pilots’ Association commended the crew for its effective handling of the incident. Its president, Captain Andy Wilson, said: “Although the illness of flight crew is rare, pilots are fully trained for such an event.”

The incident will be investigated by Air Canada and the Transportation Safety Board in Canada, which is responsible for investigating aviation accidents in that country.

In 1999 a suicidal co-pilot was blamed for the crash of an EgyptAir flight from New York that came down in the Atlantic with the loss of 217 lives after he was heard on the cockpit voice recorder saying: “I put my faith in God.”

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