Flight diverted back to Albuquerque after man tries to open door
By Web Staff
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ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (KOAT) — An airplane was able to safely land back at the Albuquerque International Sunport Tuesday afternoon. An incident caused the American Airlines plane to return back to the airport.
American Airlines wrote a statement stating the flight returned after takeoff due to a disruptive customer. The company said local law enforcement responded.
Emma Ritz, a passenger on the plane, said a man tried to open the emergency door while in the air.
“He was sitting at the emergency exit, and he cracked open the window that was protecting the handle. He ripped down the handle where it exposed some of the emergency exit and all the wind came rushing down,” said Ritz. “The guy was screaming ‘I want to get out’ when he was restrained. I’m just curious what was going on with him, why he needed to get out of the plane.”
Daniel Lewis, another passenger said he also noticed this.
“People close to the window felt the pressure so the sound was what really alerted everyone,” said Lewis.
Ritz’s phone video shows male passengers grabbing onto the man and pulling him to the floor where they end up duct-taping his feet and putting on flex cuffs.
“There was just something wrong and that’s when everything started to go chaotic,” said Blaze Ward, one of the men who helped restrain the man. “He was resisting but there were no punches at least not to me. He didn’t bite, he didn’t kick, he didn’t elbow but he was definitely continuing to try [to open the door] until we forced him off the lever.”
Lorie Lewis, another passenger on the plane, said it took her a minute to process what happened.
“An hour or two afterward, I felt more traumatized the more I kept processing it,” said Lewis.
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident. It found the flight landed safely back in New Mexico around 2:40 p.m.
The Sunport confirmed the incident and safe landing. The airplane was on the way to O’Hare International Airport in Chicago prior to the return.
KOAT reached out to the FBI who is also investigating the incident. Margot Cravens, the public affairs officer, said they cannot release any information at this time.
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