An ‘unruly passenger’ forced an American Airlines plane to make an emergency landing in the US city of Kansas on Sunday after crew and others onboard subdued the person, the airline said.
Flight 1775 from Los Angeles to Washington diverted mid-journey to Kansas City where it was met by law enforcement.
‘An unruly passenger displaying erratic behaviour was ultimately controlled by our crew and with the help of other passengers,’ the airline said in a statement.
The incident was confirmed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which said in a statement that the passenger had been taken into custody and that the investigation was ‘ongoing.’
According to CNN, a man tried to enter the cockpit and open a plane door, a fellow passenger who witnessed the incident. According to the witness, a flight attendant hit the man over the head with a coffee pot in response.
Flight attendants have reported an increase in unruly passenger incidents during the pandemic, with many involving verbal and physical abuse from travelers who refuse to wear a mask.
The Federal Aviation Administration received 5,981 reports of unruly passenger behaviour last year, the majority of which (4,290) involved mask-related behaviour.
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