The Internet's Favorite Hijacker: The Tragic Tale of Sky King

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“I’m sorry about this, I hope it doesn’t ruin your day” spoken as a man who knows he’s about to take his own life is so unimaginably sad. RIP Richard Russel.

His words "Just a broken guy, got a few screws loose" still haunt me.

You forgot to mention that the Orca was carrying her dead baby for 17 days grieving. The day after Beebo "wanted to see them guys" she moved on from her deceased baby. Gives me chills

The fact that he was able to pull off the barrel roll without crashing or having the plane disintegrate is absolutely mind blowing

I can confirm, I was glad you mentioned the two fighter jets were F-15 Eagles.

"Yknow i was kinda hoping that was gonna be the end of it yknow" bro didnt even plan on finishing the barrel roll.

I think Sky King's story resonates with a lot of people because most people hate what they do and wish that they could do and be more than what they are. And in his last moments, Sky King became more than just an airport employee.

Beebo was a personal friend of mine during his time in Oregon, and I always had a lot of respect for him. When this happened, it just felt so different from the way I remembered him just a few years before, but I also could hear flashes of the personality I remembered in a way. As an avid flight simmer, I was doing a sim flight from Portland up to Orcas Island a few years after this happened, not even thinking about what happened with him (I mean, it legit wasn't even on my mind when I took off), but then when I got to the part where I was sim-flying up the coast of Puget Sound I looked around and saw the mountains he talked about, and it hit me... Granted, I was only seeing the FSX representation of the mountains rather than the real-life ones, but that still hit me pretty hard. It's true what they say, that you never know when grief will hit you or what will bring it up in your mind.

"Im sorry. I hope I didn't ruin your day." I've said that before. Right after bindge, drinking myself at a bar, I passed out in the bathroom, and the bouncer had to come get me. Lost a buddy of mine to suicide a week before probably the lowest I have ever been. The bouncer took me aside and just talked to me for a while. I told him about my buddy, what he did in the military, how close I was, and the loss, and he just listened. I haven't ever done that since, and honestly, my heart still twitches a bit when i hear someone say that, and I try to do the same for them that one bouncer did for me that night. Just listen, it's all someone needs sometimes.

RIP Skyking. He could have done so much damage, but he chose to do a loop. Fly high brother.

22:37 he's quoting a film called 'Chronicle', coincidentally a film where the main character - Andrew, spends his last moments flying in the Seattle area, albeit without the plane. Great film

This story reminds me of the study that was done with people who survived their attempts on the Golden Gate Bridge. They all said that about halfway down, they realized their problems had solutions, and they did not want to die. It sounds like when the adrenaline wore off, Richard had that “halfway point” where he realized that he had people who loved him, would miss him, and he didn’t want it to end like this. But, tragically, he must have felt that he was committed and couldn’t get out. Such a sad story, but covered professionally and sensitively. Thank you ❤

My father took his life with his plane. In November 1995, David Burley took up his cesna and brought it down outside of wadsworth, OH. The impact of Richard Russel's story is not to be understated. My father dealt with many psychological issues, as did Richard. He was just a broken guy with a few screws loose. Thank you, Isaiah for covering this. Fly high, Sky King.

23:35 Where he says "Damn it Andrew - People's lives are at stake here!" I dont think he was actually upset or in an unstable state of mind (at least in terms of the situation already). I think he was making a joke about how dramatic the situation is, like it was a character in an action movie yelling over the radio. Throughout almost the entire conversation he says tongue-in-cheek comments and jokes. In fact, immediately after saying this in a dramatic "action movie" voice, he completely switches back to his joking lighthearted voice and jokes about the air traffic controller "whispering sweet nothings in [his] ear".

I work at SeaTac today with Alaska Airlines in a similar position to Richard as part of the ground crew, though I joined a couple years later. He’s still talked about in the company, but typically with a great deal of reverence and sympathy. People really seem to miss him. Rest in Peace dude.

This story always brings me to tears... The idea that there's so many people that can just understand why, without being told why makes my heart ache... I hope he's found peace, wherever that may be, and however that may look.

"This is probably a lot of jail time. At least, I hope it is." What an absolutely BASED statement.

he's like an older brother who doesn't talk to his younger siblings often but whenever he does it's always about obscure thing that you probably haven't heard of edit: for clarification i'm talking abt wendigoon not the guy the video is about🙃

this story is so tragic but that part about sonic the hedgehog got me, i’m glad you included it. back in 2018 ironic memes were kinda the Thing like “i have crippling depression” and shit, people would use irony as a way to vent their real feelings without making themselves feel vulnerable. that’s my take anyway. also thanks for just humanizing richard in this video, i’ve watched other sky king videos that treat it as a spectacle and “wow what a wacky weird event” while kind of ignoring his humanity. he really was just a regular guy like the rest of us and that ATC call breaks my heart every time. fly high sky king ✈️