Of the hundreds of cancellations and delays of airline flights prior to now month, most have been brought on by Covid-19 outbreaks or perilous climate. However a flight from Honduras to Miami on Tuesday was delayed for a extra novel cause — a passenger stormed the cockpit and apparently tried to climb out a window.
Whereas an American Airways flight was boarding at Ramón Villeda Morales Worldwide Airport in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, the passenger rushed into the open cockpit and “brought on harm to the plane,” the airline mentioned in a press release on Tuesday evening.
A video posted on Twitter by a person who appeared to have been on the airport confirmed that the passenger could have been attempting to exit the airplane by means of a cockpit window.
Crew members intervened earlier than the native authorities apprehended the person, American mentioned.
“We applaud our excellent crew members for his or her professionalism in dealing with a tough state of affairs,” the assertion mentioned.
It was unclear what the person’s motive was. American Airways referred additional inquiries to the native authorities, which didn’t reply to emails or telephone calls on Tuesday evening.
The episode got here at a time when airways have seen a surge in violent conduct by passengers, a lot of whom who’re protesting masks mandates.
No matter motivation, the passenger’s actions on Tuesday compelled his fellow passengers to attend round seven hours for a brand new plane.
The flight was initially scheduled to take off simply earlier than 3 p.m., however American mentioned in its assertion that the flight was set to depart round 9:30 p.m. as a substitute. The airline’s web site confirmed an excellent later departure time: 10:40 p.m.
The passengers have been anticipated to land in Miami round 2 a.m. Wednesday, in accordance with the airline’s web site.
The delay got here simply as hundreds of flights have been disrupted throughout the vacation journey rush. Between Friday and Sunday, round 5,000 flights have been canceled, in accordance with FlightAware, a knowledge monitoring service.
The checklist of woes is lengthy for airways, which over the pandemic have handled journey slowdowns, passenger violence and staff calling in sick at excessive charges because the Omicron variant has unfold at an astonishing velocity.
