Mid-air scare: another passenger tries opening the emergency exit door

Be glad you weren’t on THIS flight. An American Airlines flight from Albuquerque to Chicago took a potentially horrific turn when a passenger attempted to open the emergency door mid-flight. The unruly passenger had to be subdued by at least six others before he was restrained with duct tape and flex cuffs. A witness described the chaos as the man “ripped down the handle” of the emergency door, causing a rush of wind into the cabin.… Despite the alarming incident, the plane was able to safely land back in New Mexico without any injuries. The passenger, who was determined to get off the flight, was met with a police escort upon arrival.

Albuquerque TV station KOAT interviewed several passengers including Emma Ritz, who said the man tried to open an emergency door while the jetliner was airborne. “He was sitting at the emergency exit and he cracked open the window that was protecting the handle,” Ritz said. “He ripped down the handle where it exposed some of the emergency exit and all the wind came rushing down.” KOAT reported that six other passengers on the plane wrestled the man down and restrained him in the aisle until the flight ended by duct-taping his feet and putting on flex cuffs. “The guy was screaming ‘I want to get out’ when he was restrained,” Ritz told KOAT. The plane landed safely at Sunport, where passengers said local law enforcement took the man away.

Here is how some TV stations covered the story which included passenger videos.