The Federal Aviation Administration and United Airlines are investigating an incident involving the Colorado Rockies during a chartered flight from Denver to Toronto.
In a since-deleted video posted to social media, Rockies hitting coach Hensley Meulens is seen sitting in a pilot’s seat in the cockpit while the plane is in flight.
“Had some fun in the cockpit on our flight from Denver to Toronto. Thanks to the captain and the first officer of our United charter that allowed me this great experience,” Meulens wrote in a caption for the social media post.
“We’re deeply disturbed by what we see in that video, which appears to show an unauthorized person in the flight deck at cruise altitude while the autopilot was engaged,” United Airlines said in a statement. “As a clear violation of our safety and operational policies, we’ve reported the incident to the FAA and have withheld the pilots from service while we conduct an investigation.”
A spokesman for the FAA said it does not “comment on the details of open investigations” but noted that “federal regulations restrict flight deck access to specific individuals.”
The Rockies told The Denver Post on Friday morning that the team has no comment.
Meulens is in his second year as the team’s hitting coach. He has previously served as a coach and manager for the Dutch national team.
Colorado (4-15) has lost five straight, including its final two games against the Blue Jays. The Rockies begin a nine-game home stand Friday night against the Seattle Mariners.