Pooh21, I believe the comment was mean spirited, whether it was a joke or not.
While cracking-wise over this incident, perhaps you should take a moment to imagine what the last minute was like for those terrified passengers as they died. You may or may not know that both of my wife's parents died a few months ago in a house fire, so perhaps the fiery death of those passengers resonates more strongly with me than others, but no day passes without me imagining what it was like.
I went through the wreckage of their home and I identified their bodies, so I have a pretty vivid image of what the rescuers, clean up crews, and families are going through right now.
I'm thankful that your comment was not transmitted to them or the immediate family of the first officer. Go look up survivors guilt and try to imagine how that might apply to him, then let us know how you feel.