On March 27, 2012, the Airbus A320 serving the route diverted to Amarillo, Texas, after the captain, suffering from an apparent mental breakdown, started behaving erratically and making increasingly incoherent and disturbing statements, prompting the first officer to lock him out of the cockpit and ask the passengers and crew to restrain him.

First Officer Jason Dowd (41) grew concerned when Osbon made comments such as "We need to take a leap of faith", "We're not going to Vegas", and "I can't be held responsible when this plane crashes."

Dowd became extremely concerned as Osbon's behaviour on the flight deck became more erratic and unusual; dimming his primary flight display, engine instruments and navigation display to the point they were almost totally switched off and unusable, yelling at air traffic controllers on frequency ordering them to be quiet, and admonishing Dowd for communicating with the "outside" when he responded to a concerned call from ATC.

Upon hearing Osbon trying to open the door, Dowd picked up the public address system and ordered passengers and flight attendants to restrain the captain.

Osbon was then ordered to be held pending a further investigation; he was then immediately transferred to a mental health facility in Fort Worth for additional treatment.

"[15] In March 2015, Osbon filed a suit against JetBlue for $14.9 million, claiming that the airline did not ensure he was fit to fly, and endangered the lives of the crew and the passengers.

Possibilities suggested included the onset of a psychotic disorder, a neurological event that compromised his brain function, or intoxication due to medication.