American Airlines travelers duct-tape unruly passenger who charged flight attendant, tried to open plane door in midair
A group of passengers on board an American Airlines flight restrained and tied up a passenger with duct tape after he allegedly tried to open an aircraft door mid-flight.
The incident happened on American Airlines flight 1915 from Milwaukee to Dallas-Fort Worth on Tuesday.
Passengers jumped into help after seeing a disruptive passenger from Canada allegedly tell a flight attendant near the front of the plane that he needed to exit via a cabin door.
In the ordeal, the passenger went up to a flight attendant in the front galley of the aircraft and made a comment about “wanting and needing to exit the aircraft now,” according to a Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Department of Public Safety report.
The flight attendant told authorities the passenger’s voice got louder and he became more agitated. She made a call to the rear flight attendant to request more people in the front and also made a hand gesture to passengers near her indicating she needed assistance.
She then placed herself between the left, first entry door on the aircraft and the passenger, and he rushed towards her and the door. He jumped on top of her in his effort to access the cabin door, injuring her left wrist and neck, the report said.
One of the passengers, Doug McCright, bear hugged the unruly passenger in an attempt to pull him off of her.
“The only thing you could think about was, 'I’ve gotta stop this guy,'” McCright, who was sitting in the front row of the flight, told NBC News. He recalled hearing the unruly passenger say, “I’m getting off this plane. I need to get off the plane.”
Another flight attendant told authorities the passenger told her he wanted to get off the flight because he was the “captain.” This flight attendant tried to deescalate the man, but he did not listen and kept insisting he was getting off the flight.
Passenger Charlie Boris also jumped into help.
“The fight or flight instinct kind of came over. And yeah after processing and the situation was done, yeah I’m very thankful to be here,” Boris told NBC’s Jesse Kirsch.
According to the report, Boris told authorities that on the flight he learned there was a man trying to open the cabin door and went to the front of the plane to assist. Once there, he saw the passenger on the ground trying to “get free.” Boris sprung into action by pinning the man’s legs down with pressure and he said duct tape was used to subdue the male. Boris said the man was talking about being from Toronto and seeing a therapist.
Other passengers were also mentioned in the report as witnesses and assisting in restraining of the unruly man. One told authorities it took at least three people to keep the passenger down.
When the plane landed at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, officers said they arrived to find “a male passenger on board who was secured and restrained with tape.”
The passenger was seen lying on his stomach with his hands behind his back bound as well as his ankles with duct tape, the report said.
The passenger was transported for evaluation. The investigation is ongoing.
American Airlines said that the restraint tape used in the incident is included in an onboard kit as a safety measure.
“The safety and security of our customers and team members is our top priority and we thank our team members and customers for managing a difficult situation,” the airline said.
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