The countless delays and cancellations plaguing air travel right now (not to mention the packed planes, the skyrocketing ticket prices, and mask mandates) have left many airline passengers angrier than we’ve ever seen them before. Most air travellers have been seen taking their air rage out on flight attendants or their seatmates, but on Tuesday, one guy on a Miami-bound American Airlines flight decided to take things one step further, by storming the cockpit and wrecking part of the aircraft’s controls.
A fellow passenger posted some photos from the scene on Twitter, including one showing the partially busted pilot equipment. The user also managed to get a short clip of the man seemingly trying to jump from a window in the cockpit while airline workers scramble on the tarmac below.
— Ariel Sierra (@ArielSierra) January 12, 2022
A spokesperson for the airline confirmed to The Washington Post that a passenger had “caused damage,” before being taken down by workers onboard the plane, and then being passed off to local law enforcement. “We applaud our outstanding crew members for their professionalism in handling a difficult situation,” the spokesperson added.
“Difficult” is a good word to describe the circumstances facing airline workers right now; flight attendants have reported being choked, punched in the face, and subjected to verbal abuse from unruly passengers 0ver the past several months. But really, the only thing those sorts of outbursts accomplish is potentially getting those passengers fined thousands of dollars, while also adding more delays to a flight schedule that’s already stretched to its limit.
The online flight tracker FlightAware shows that the American Airlines flight from Honduras to Miami that this man was on ended up being delayed by a full eight hours on account of his outburst. Instead of landing around six in the afternoon like initially planned, passengers didn’t touch down until almost two A.M.