A group of American Airlines passengers restrained a passenger who tried to open the plane’s door during the flight and tied him up with duct tape, authorities said.
The incident occurred Tuesday on American Airlines Flight 1915 from Milwaukee to Dallas-Fort Worth.
The saboteur from Canada was seen near the front of the plane telling a flight attendant that he needed to exit through the cabin door, and passengers jumped in to help.
The passenger approached a flight attendant in the aircraft’s forward galley and commented, “I want and need to get off the plane right now,” according to a report from the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport Department of Public Safety.
Flight attendants told authorities the passengers were getting louder and more agitated. She called the rear flight attendant to request more people to come forward, and also gestured to nearby passengers to indicate that she needed help.
She positioned herself between the first entry door and the passenger on the left side of the plane, and the man lunged for her and the door. The man jumped on top of her while trying to access the cabin door, injuring her left wrist and neck, the report said.
One passenger, Doug McCreight, hugged the bear in an attempt to pull him away from her.
“All I could think was, ‘We have to stop this guy,'” McCreight, who was sitting in the front row of the plane, told NBC News. He recalled hearing an unruly passenger say, I have to get off the plane. ”
Another flight attendant told authorities that the passenger told her he wanted to get off the plane because he was the “captain.” The flight attendant tried to defuse the situation, but she refused to listen and continued to insist that she get off the plane.
Passenger Charlie Boris also rushed to help.
“It’s like the fight-or-flight instinct kicked in. And, yeah, after I processed it and the situation was over, yeah, I’m very grateful to be here,” Boris told NBC News.
The report said Boris told authorities he saw a man trying to open the cabin door on the plane and went to the front of the plane to help. When they got there, they saw a passenger on the ground trying to “get free.” Boris said he took action by putting pressure on the man’s legs and duct tape was used to subdue him. Boris said the man was from Toronto and was talking about seeing a therapist.
Other passengers are also mentioned in the report as witnesses and as having helped stop the unruly man. One person told authorities it took at least three people to subdue the man.
Officers said that when the plane landed in Dallas, they found “a male passenger on board who was secured with tape and restrained.”
The passenger was found face down with his hands tied behind his back and duct tape wrapped around his ankles, the report said.
Passengers were transported for evaluation. Investigation is ongoing.
American Airlines says restraint tape is included in in-flight kits 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.”
