The captain of Continental Airlines flight 61 has died while flying the plane from Brussels to New York.
The captain of Continental Airlines flight 61 has died while flying the plane from Brussels to New York.
The plane made an emergency landing at Newark Liberty International Airport shortly before 1200 (1600 GMT).
The plane made an emergency landing at Newark Liberty International Airport shortly before 1200 (1600 GMT).
Two co-pilots were in control of the plane - a Boeing 777 carrying 247 passengers - said Federal Aviation Authority spokeswoman Arlene Salac.
Two co-pilots were in control of the plane - a Boeing 777 carrying 247 passengers - said Federal Aviation Authority spokeswoman Arlene Salac.
An aviation expert told the BBC it was "very rare" for pilots to die while at the controls on an airborne plane.
It would appear that the surviving crew [members coped] very well indeed Jim FergusonAviation writer
Jim Ferguson said it must have been "very difficult" and distressing for the co-pilots to land the plane safely.
The captain apparently died of natural causes, a Continental Airlines spokesman told CNN.
The captain apparently died of natural causes, a Continental Airlines spokesman told CNN.
He was a 61-year-old man with more than 20 years of service to the airline, a spokesman for the airline said.
He was a 60-year-old man with more than 20 years of service to the airline, a spokesman for the airline said.
Lucky landing
There were two co-pilots on board - the regular co-pilot and, in an apparent stroke of good fortune, an additional relief co-pilot.
Only two pilots are required on twin-engine planes like the Boeing 777, but Mr Ferguson - an aviation writer from the UK - told BBC News the plane would be difficult to land with only one pilot at the controls.
"You could, I gather, land a 777 single-handed - but it would require a lot of effort and it would appear [in this case there was] a very young co-pilot - so if there was another one, that would help.
"It would be very difficult, very distressing. I don't know if this [scenario] is carried out on simulator training or not.
"But it's very, very rare - and it would appear that the surviving crew member carried it out very well indeed."
'No chance' for pilot
Passengers were not told about the events in the cockpit during the flight, but a number of them did respond to an announcement asking if doctors were on board, reported the Associated Press news agency.
Among them was Dr Julien Struyven, 72, a cardiologist and radiologist from Brussels, who went to the cockpit and examined the pilot.
"He was not alive," Dr Struyven told AP. There was "no chance at all" of saving him, he said.
Dr Struyven said he suspected the pilot had suffered a cardiac arrest. He said he used a defibrillator to try and revive the pilot, but it was too late.
Pilots are subject to rigorous medical checks which increase in frequency with age.
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