American Airlines flyer tries to open exit door: 10 times idiots risked hundreds of lives
If you are afraid of flying due to the 5G network concerns, bad weather and technical glitches after watching all that Air Crash Investigation TV series, you may want to add one more peril to your list – an unruly co-passenger.
Co-passengers on flights can be annoying, from the crying babies, parents who can’t control their children, hair dangling off in front you, the feet on your armrest, jacket covering your screen, the list is endless. But while these are mere annoyances, there are some co-passengers who end up risking the lives of hundreds of others.
On February 13, 2022, an American Airlines flight AA1775 from Los Angeles to Washington DC descended 30,900 feet in less than 8 minutes in an emergency landing in Kansas City, Missouri, due to an unruly passenger.
Flight AA1775 from LA to DC just did an emergency landing in Kansas after a near disaster when one passenger attempted to open the plane door mid flight. Other passengers and flight attendants subdued and had to use force to disable the individual. Now in Kansas waiting for FBI
— Mouaz Moustafa (@SoccerMouaz) February 13, 2022
WHAT DID THE PASSENGER DO? The erratic passenger tried to break into the cockpit (unsuccessfully) and also attempted to open the exit door mid-air. The passenger was restrained by the crew with the help of some passengers, his hands and legs tied with duct tape and zip ties.
passengers held the individual and a flight attendant used a coffee pot to subdue him as the plane descended rapidly. the man was bleeding as the police in this video are taking him off the flight after landing in Kansas #AA1775 pic.twitter.com/HL2JnyYglw
— Mouaz Moustafa (@SoccerMouaz) February 13, 2022
According to witnesses, the passenger was restless during the flight, pacing up and down the aisle, before going completely berserk. The identity of the passenger remains unknown and after the emergency landing, the FBI is investigating the matter.
The FBI have boarded flight #AA1775 and are going through the scene after a flight attendant used a coffee pot to strike a middle aged man multiple times who was attempting to open the plane door. pic.twitter.com/L7FYeedzuD
— Mouaz Moustafa (@SoccerMouaz) February 13, 2022
Police have boarded flight #AA1775 from #LA to #DC which made an emergency and rapid landing in Kansas. Flight descended at 5000 fps. It felt like the plane was free falling and many feared the worst because people weren’t fully aware of what was unfolding pic.twitter.com/qyDHSrdUqF
— Mouaz Moustafa (@SoccerMouaz) February 13, 2022
Some of the passengers on the flight posted their experience on Twitter:
Very scary! I was watching Dune. The lights were out. All of the sudden lights came on and several men stood up to rush to first class. I didn’t see the fight just the reaction of the men. I knew immediately something was wrong
— Karen Maria Alston (@advertisingdiva) February 13, 2022
Passengers who were sleeping on the flight which was already 3 hours into the journey, woke up to lights being abruptly turned on and the flight crew running down the aisle.
American Airlines released a statement on the incident: "American Airlines flight 1775 with service from Los Angeles (LAX) to Washington, DC (DCA) diverted to Kansas City (MCI) due to an unruly passenger. The flight landed safely at MCI at 2.28 pm local time, and law enforcement was requested to meet the flight on arrival. We're grateful to our crew members, who are consistently dedicated to the safety and care of our customers and who handled the circumstances with the utmost skill and professionalism."
Statement regarding a diverted flight to @KCIAirport earlier today, from FBI Kansas City Special Agent in Charge Charles Dayoub. pic.twitter.com/ql5cQRpbZM
— FBI Kansas City (@FBIKansasCity) February 13, 2022
Such unruly passengers have been the bane of flying ever since flights took off from the ground. Here are 10 times unruly passengers threatened the safety of passengers on a flight:
1. SNEAKING INTO BUSINESS CLASS
If there isn’t a madman trying to open the exit door on a flight, then there are some passengers who think they can get away with doing anything on a flight. In January 2022, a United Airlines flight from Newark to Tel Aviv was forced to be rerouted because two passengers tried to sneak into the business class. When confronted by the crew, the duo started a heated argument.
2. COVID CONUNDRUM
The Covid-19 pandemic has divided the world further politically and scientifically. So of course, flights are no exceptions. We have heard one too many stories about passengers on flight refusing to wear masks or follow Covid-appropriate protocols. Last month, a flight from Miami and London had to return to Miami after an hour into the flight because a passenger in first class refused to wear a mask.
3. TAPED TO SEAT
This is Maxwell Berry of Norwalk, Ohio. After groping flight attendants he proceeded to rant about his parents wealth and assault another flight attendant. This man is a thug and a threat to society #MaxwellBerry #Criminal pic.twitter.com/jEJ3VD9BMA
— Dose (@whoisdose) August 3, 2021
Nobody can forget the viral video of a man being duct-taped to a flight seat as he keeps screaming profanities. In July 2021, a US man, Maxwell Berry, on a Frontier Airlines flight from Philadelphia to Miami insulted his co-passengers, took off his shirt and roamed around the flight, assaulted a male flight attendant and groped two female flight attendants. The crew duct-taped him to a seat for the rest of the flight.
4. PASSENGER THREATENS CREW
Just this month, February 2022, a flight from North Carolina to Los Angeles made an emergency landing in New Mexico because a passenger allegedly threatened to kill a crew member. Apparently, a man and woman with four children started a ruse trying to get other passengers to switch seats with them to be able to sit together, as they had not pre-booked the seats together. Then, passengers complained that the children were running astray. When a crew member spoke to the man to get them under control, he reportedly said, “I have your information. I will find you and I will shoot you."
5. PASSENGER GOES BERSERK
— Ariel Sierra (@ArielSierra) January 12, 2022
In January 2022, a passenger on the American Airlines flight from Honduras to Miami went berserk during the boarding process, breaking into the cockpit, opening the cockpit window and trying to jump out of the window (unsuccessfully). The flight was delayed for hours as a result.
If you thought the crazy flight incidents only happen in the US, they don’t. They happen in India too:
6. SMOKING ON FLIGHT
In January 2022, two passengers on the Male to Mumbai flight seriously risked the lives of their co-passengers by smoking in the lavatory. The crime was detected only when another passenger opened the door to the lavatory and found the smell of smoke. Cigarette smoking on flights can be gravely hazardous. For example in 1973, a Brazilian flight from Rio De Janerio to Paris made an emergency landing after a fire broke out. Some passengers, unfortunately, died after inhaling the toxic fumes. It was later found that the fire was caused by a cigarette thrown in a dustbin.
7. UN-SEATABLE PASSENGER
In November 2021, a SpiceJet flight from Guwahati to Delhi had to deboard a passenger after he repeatedly got off his set and created a ruckus.
8. STRIPPING NAKED
In April 2021, a passenger on the Air Asia flight from Bengaluru to Delhi stripped naked mid-air, to the horror of his co-passengers. The man who seemed to be inebriated also picked up an argument with the crew over the life jackets. He was finally brought under control by the crew and other passengers and the flight was given priority landing.
9. VIOLENT PASSENGER
A passenger on a flight from Dubai to Delhi in January 2017, was tied down to his seat after he started to misbehave and threaten the crew.
10. WHEN THE PASSENGER WAS NOT AT FAULT
It’s not that passengers are the only people who make a flight unbearable or unnecessarily nightmarish. Recently, the British Airways crew picked up a fight with a well-known lawyer in the UK on their flight to Italy, during the boarding process. Charles Banner, a top Queen’s Counsel, his wife, children and their nanny had booked business class tickets to Italy, only to be told during the last moment of boarding that their nanny’s seat was downgraded to the economy class due to over-booking. When the family refused to budge, they were whisked away by security.
Flights can be tiring, but when a disruptive passenger adds to it by elongating the flight time, it just feels like the universe wants you to be unhappy.