A passenger on a domestic flight to Mexico was arrested on suspicion of attempting to divert the plane to the United States, the airline announced Sunday.
The incident occurred on a Volaris flight from El Bajio to Tijuana when a passenger tried to forcibly turn the plane around, the airline said in a statement.
The airline said flight attendants intervened and restrained the man, but the plane was forced to land at Guadalajara International Airport in central Mexico.
“The crew acted in accordance with established security procedures and, in accordance with protocol, the plane was diverted to the airport in Guadalajara and the airline handed over the passengers to the custody of the competent authorities,” Volaris said.
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A passenger on a Volaris flight was arrested after the airline said he tried to force the plane to divert to the United States early Sunday morning. (Reuters/Henry Romero, File)
The airline said no passengers were injured. After the man was arrested and removed from the plane, the passengers continued on to their destination.
The airline said the passengers continued on to their destinations after the man was arrested. (Reuters/Henry Romero, File)
It is unclear where in the United States the man tried to force the plane to fly.
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Witnesses on the plane recounted how the man, who was traveling with his wife and children, grabbed the flight attendant and threatened her with a pen around her neck. FOX5 San Diego Reported. Witnesses said the man tried to grab the plane's door handle, threatening to jump to his death along with the flight attendant.
Authorities did not immediately release a motive for the man's alleged actions. (Reuters/Edgardo Garrido, File)
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The man's motives remain unclear, but the paper said the man claimed that “if the plane did not land in the United States, his life and that of his family would be in danger.”
