A flight from Tokyo to Texas erupted into a chaos and terror on Saturday morning when a passenger attempted to open an emergency exit door mid-flight.
All Nippon Airways Flight NH14 was forced to make an emergency landing in Seattle some nine hours into the 12 hours flight from Asia to the United States.
The Houston-bound Boeing 777 was just over three hours from landing when the unnamed passenger jumped from his seat and made a beeline for the emergency exit.
Most passengers were likely asleep on the long haul overnight flight when the man lunged toward the door.
Airplane doors generally cannot be opened midflight because air pressure differences between inside and outside the cabin keep cabin doors sealed in place requiring a person to generate more force than humanly possible to open – but that didn’t stop the terror from spreading through the cabin.
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport spokesperson Chris Guizlo confirmed that the man had to be physically restrained by passengers and crew as the aircraft cruised tens of thousands of feet above Washington State.
The captain of the aircraft made the decision to turn the plane around back to Seattle and managed to get the plane on the ground within 45 minutes of the incident occurring.
‘Police and EMS were told that a passenger tried to open an emergency exit door mid-flight,’ Guizlo confirmed.
All Nippon Airways Flight NH14 was forced to make an emergency landing in Seattle some nine hours into the 12 hours flight from Asia to the United States
The captain of the aircraft made the decision to turn the plane around back to Seattle and managed to get the plane back on the ground within 45 minutes of the incident occurring
Airplane doors generally cannot be opened midflight because air pressure differences between inside and outside – but that didn’t stop the terror from spreading through the cabin
Law enforcement and medical personnel were already standing by on the tarmac when the plane arrived at SeaTac airport around 4:20am.
Airport officials said the passenger was removed from the plane and immediately transported to a local hospital, where he was evaluated for a medical crisis.
As of now, no charges have been announced, and the individual’s identity and current condition remain unknown.
Flight-tracking site FlightAware confirmed that after the man was removed, the plane resumed its route and landed in Houston at 12:15pm, about four hours behind schedule.
