A United Airlines flight out of Newark turned into a midair nightmare Thursday night after a passenger allegedly tried to open a plane door at 36,000 feet and attacked another traveler, forcing the jet to make an emergency landing.
United Flight 1551 was headed from Newark Liberty International Airport to Guatemala City when the chaos unfolded on board.
The Boeing 737 MAX 8 was carrying 145 passengers and six crew members at the time. The flight had been scheduled to leave the New Jersey airport around 7 p.m., but instead of continuing to Guatemala, it ended up on the ground at Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia.
According to air traffic control audio, the passenger allegedly tried to open Door 2L while the aircraft was flying at 36,000 feet. Door 2L is on the left side of the passenger cabin.
In the recording, someone can be heard asking, “What door did the passenger try to open?”
Another voice responds that it was Door 2L, adding that the passenger then “assaulted a fellow passenger.”
The pilot was also asked whether anyone on board had been injured.
“Not to our knowledge,” the pilot replied, according to the ATC exchange.
The plane landed safely at Dulles around 8:38 p.m., where federal law enforcement officers were waiting. The passenger involved was taken into custody, according to NBC New York.
The traveler allegedly attacked another passenger near the door he had tried to open. The nature of that passenger’s injuries was not immediately known, and no one else was reported hurt.
United confirmed that the flight was canceled after the emergency landing.
“United flight 1551 landed safely at Washington Dulles and was met by law enforcement to address an unruly passenger,” the airline said in a statement reported by CBS News. “The flight was canceled, with a replacement flight added for Friday morning, and customers were provided overnight accommodations.”
No other details about the suspect were immediately released.
The incident comes during a rough week for some United passengers at Newark. On Wednesday, travelers trying to get to Chicago were reportedly stuck on the tarmac for seven hours, though United said those delays were weather-related and not connected to Thursday’s midair scare.
Hope they don’t let him off with mental illness bs so sick of that. I’m sure he knew right from wrong, hold him accountable for once.