This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The American Airlines pilot and West Jordan resident who died mid-flight on Monday had heart problems for years — but his wife said he had been feeling better than ever in the days and weeks before his death.
Michael Johnston likely died of a heart attack while piloting the red eye flight from Phoenix, AZ to Boston, MA.
His wife, BJ Johnston, told KUTV that her 57-year-old husband had heart problems, and had a double bypass surgery in 2006. Since then, he had been required to get a physical exam every six months to make sure he was healthy enough to fly.
But the wife said her husband had recently lost weight, and had been feeling normal.
"As far as we knew, he was in perfect health," she told the television station on Monday. "He left yesterday feeling fine."
Johnston's family is struggling to come to terms with the death, but BJ Johnston said she takes solace knowing her husband died while doing what he loved.
"If nothing else, I'm grateful that that's what he was doing," she said.
The American Airlines flight from Phoenix to Boston was diverted to Syracuse, New York, after Johnston, the captain, became ill and later died. The plane later completed the flight to its intended destination with a different crew.
CEO Doug Parker told his employees in an email that Johnston was a Brigham Young University graduate, who started his career with America West Airlines in 1990 as a first officer. He extended his condolences to Johnston's family, and thanked the pilot's crew members.
"They took extraordinary care of Mike, each other and our customers," Parker wrote. "We couldn't be more proud of the teamwork this crew showed during an extremely difficult time."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Twitter: @jm_miller