On Tuesday, November 19th, a group of passengers onboard an American Airlines flight were forced to restrain the wrists and ankles of a disruptive airline passenger using duct tape after the individual in question allegedly attempted to open an aircraft door while the plane was airborne.
The incident occurred onboard American Airlines Flight 1915, a daily morning flight from Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport (MKE) to American's Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) hub.
After the flight departed, a flight attendant indicated that a man got up during the flight, approached a flight attendant, and told her that he needed to exit the aircraft, according to reports from Dallas-based news outlet 8 ABC.
Allegedly, the man grew agitated and began speaking much more loudly, before he rushed at the flight attendant, attempting to access and potentially open the cabin's door.
Three passengers approached the galley to assist the flight attendant when she called them over using hand gestures, after calling different parts of the aircraft requesting additional crew members.
The assisting passengers were able to help pin the man down and subdue him by duct-taping his wrists and ankles, according to reports from NBC News.
The man was also indicated to be Canadian in multiple reports.
Upon arrival in Dallas, the DFW Airport Department of Public Safety, alongside agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), boarded the aircraft.
Later reports indicated that another passenger was still restraining the man even when law enforcement arrived, and subsequently took the man off the aircraft in a wheelchair, in order to receive psychological evaluation.
The flight attendant who had been involved in the initial altercation received injuries to both her wrist and neck and later had to be taken to the hospital.
Despite this, Dallas' FBI Airport Liaison agents indicated that no charges were filed in connection with the incident.
As a problematic safety-related incident, it is unsurprising that American Airlines was quick to respond to the altercation. In a statement regarding the matter, the airline had the following words to share:
"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."
Another one of the passengers, one who reportedly bear-hugged the agitator to get him off of the flight attendant, indicated that he repeatedly heard the passenger saying that he needed to and was going to get off the aircraft right then and there.
Other reports indicated that the flight attendant was also told by the unruly passenger that he was the "captain" when she attempted to deescalate the situation.
Another passenger, who had used duct tape to subdue a passenger, indicated that the unruly passenger had indicated that he was from Toronto and was seeing a therapist.
American Airlines later indicated that this duct tape is typically kept onboard to subdue any potential problem-causing passengers, especially those that pose a threat to opening cabin doors in flight.
