Guest Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 Here we go again, another out of hand passenger. Man tried to get into cockpit on flight to Hawaii: officials An American Airlines passenger has been detained after allegedly breaching the cockpit. Jennifer Sinco Kelleher And Michael Balsamo, The Associated Press Published Friday, May 19, 2017 9:37PM EDT Last Updated Friday, May 19, 2017 10:34PM EDT HONOLULU -- Two U.S. fighter jets were summoned Friday to escort a flight from Los Angeles to Hawaii after an unruly man was subdued by passengers and flight attendants, who used a drink cart to block him from the front of the plane. The man, identified by law enforcement officials as Anil Uskanil, 25, of Turkey, was duct-taped to his seat until the plane landed in Honolulu and federal agents boarded the plane and arrested him, passenger Lee Lorenzen said. "The flight attendants just were really heroic," Lorenzen said. "By the time we landed and the FBI took him into custody, he was very mellow." In this photo provided by Donna Basden, a man is escorted off an American Airlines flight after it landed in Honolulu, Friday, May 19, 2017. (Donna Basden via AP) American Airlines Flight 31 had 181 passengers and six crew members aboard, said airline spokeswoman Katie Cody, who did not provide details on the incident. The trouble with Uskanil actually began about eight hours before the flight departed. He was arrested before dawn at Los Angeles International Airport for opening a door that led onto an airfield ramp, according to Los Angeles Airport Police, who provided Uskanil's identity to The Associated Press. Police say Uskanil had been drinking but didn't meet the criteria for public drunkenness. He was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanour trespassing, given a date to appear in court and allowed to take the flight to Honolulu. Passengers noticed him before the plane even took off Mark and Donna Basden were among the first to board the plane and found a laptop in the seat pocket of Mark Basden. The Albuquerque, New Mexico, couple assumed it was from the previous flight. A flight attendant said it must belong to a man in the bathroom. Then a "disheveled looking fellow" walked out, Donna Basden said. Mark Basden handed the man the laptop, telling him it had been in his seat. He said the man scowled at him, took the laptop, opened it and closed it and then tried to sit in another seat in first class. Donna Basden said the man "clearly looked out of place," but he didn't say anything. The flight attendant went up to him and asked to see his boarding pass, then when she looked at it she told him he was in row 35 and sent him to the back of the plane. About halfway through the six-hour flight, the Basdens saw the same man, holding his laptop, with something over his head, which they thought was a towel or a blanket. Passenger Grant Arakelian said, "He was very quiet, moving very sluggish. He was trying to approach the cabin, like where the captain is." Lorenzen and his wife Penny Lorenzen, of Orange County, California, were sitting in first class and saw a "really serious look" on the flight attendant's face. The flight attendant ran down the aisle with her serving cart and blocked the doorway separating first class from the rest of the plane. "She jammed the cart in that the doorway and she just said, 'You're not coming in here,"' Lee Lorenzen said. He said the man was pushing against the cart, trying to get through. At that point, passengers came up from behind and grabbed him. He was restrained with duct tape for the rest of the flight. Uskanil having a laptop with him may have caused more concern than usual, with U.S. and European officials in recent weeks exchanging threats about aviation believed to include bombs hidden in laptop computers. Laptops have been banned on a handful of international flights, and could soon be outlawed on far more. U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly was briefed on the midair disturbance, according to a statement from the department. There are no other reports of disruptions, but the department said it is monitoring all flights Friday out of caution. As Uskanil was subdued, the cockpit called for help. Federal agents were sent to wait for the plane and two F-22 Raptors from the Hawaii Air National Guard scrambled to meet the plane. "We got that military escort coming into Honolulu," Donna Basden said with a laugh, "so welcome to Hawaii." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conehead Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 Where'd the passengers get the duct tape from? It's not normally standard equipment on board... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kip Powick Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 17 minutes ago, Malcolm said: ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and two F-22 Raptors from the Hawaii Air National Guard scrambled to meet the plane. Why ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canoehead Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 He's lucky it wasn't May of 2002. He might not have come off the airplane alive... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDR Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 Red Green would have been proud. The handy man's secret weapon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.O. Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 3 hours ago, conehead said: Where'd the passengers get the duct tape from? It's not normally standard equipment on board... Budget cuts? Maybe American found that duct tape is cheaper as a restraint than the fancy law enforcement zip ties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st27 Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 Quote two F-22 Raptors from the Hawaii Air National Guard scrambled to meet the plane. Shades of 9/11....shoot it down if it starts heading for downtown, i would assume. Who knows what was said to ATC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vanishing point Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 I wondered about the duct tape as well but regardless of that, a passenger cannot be physically restrained TO a seat. They can be restrained IN a seat. Perhaps US airline policy is different from Canadian airline policy.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CD Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 It's happened in the past... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moeman Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 8 hours ago, conehead said: Where'd the passengers get the duct tape from? It's not normally standard equipment on board... Perhaps part of their restraint kit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conehead Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 Perhaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfhunter Posted May 20, 2017 Share Posted May 20, 2017 10 hours ago, Kip Powick said: Why ??? Post 911 it’s about having options. If ever there was a no win command decision that might be it. BTW, duct tape is well known as a viable "poor mans" restraint. I’m partial to Gorilla tape but thats just me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kip Powick Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 12 minutes ago, Wolfhunter said: Post 911 it’s about having options. If ever there was a no win command decision that might be it. BTW, duct tape is well known as a viable "poor mans" restraint. I’m partial to Gorilla tape but thats just me. My question was about the "scramble"....no reference to duct tape.... The aircraft had an unruly passenger on board who had been subdued........, why do fighters have to be scrambled..?.....there was no threat indicated by the pilots who were undoubtedly locked in the pointy end.....unless they requested the escort which perhaps was their CYA plan. There were no jets scrambled when AC had that unruly passenger on board from Jamaica and had to divert to Florida. Sounds / looks like over-kill in my mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 As far as tethering him to the seat, I say go for it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 6 minutes ago, Kip Powick said: My question was about the "scramble"....no reference to duct tape.... The aircraft had an unruly passenger on board who had been subdued........, why do fighters have to be scrambled..?.....there was no threat indicated by the pilots who were undoubtedly locked in the pointy end.....unless they requested the escort which perhaps was their CYA plan. There were no jets scrambled when AC had that unruly passenger on board from Jamaica and had to divert to Florida. Sounds / looks like over-kill in my mind. Unless of course there was any doubt as to the actual outcome of the problem. Perhaps the passenger and others had taken over the cockpit after the initial transmission etc etc etc. The cost of providing the escort was peanuts when compared to the cost of not having them if needed. Afterall they were approaching a "target rich" environment. The Belt plus suspenders policy is one widely used then drawing up legal documents and is used "just in case". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.O. Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 It may be 16 years ago, but let's remember AA lost two aircraft on 9/11. I have no idea if they do, but could you really blame them if they had a policy to request an escort? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kip Powick Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 You can bet the house that the moment the pilots hear about a passenger going nuts they both ensure the cockpit door is locked and "apparently" the doors when locked are impenetrable.....so "takeover"?????. More like a CYA plan and perhaps they just wanted to fly formation with a couple of Raptors... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 2 minutes ago, Kip Powick said: You can bet the house that the moment the pilots hear about a passenger going nuts they both ensure the cockpit door is locked and "apparently" the doors when locked are impenetrable.....so "takeover"?????. More like a CYA plan and perhaps they just wanted to fly formation with a couple of Raptors... Unless of course the unlock codes had been shared on the internet.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfhunter Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 6 minutes ago, Kip Powick said: My question was about the "scramble"....no reference to duct tape... It was two paragraphs, use of duct tape was a side bar… Attempting to gain access qualifies as a bit more than unruly. Armed intercept provides options but makes for a tough call. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kip Powick Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 I have read many articles on this incident. Some say he never made it through First Class because a FAs serving cart blocked his way. Another tabloid says he tried to breach the cockpit door, another says he stated that he would go in the cockpit and bring the aircraft down.....Only the crew knows.... What is repeated is that the crew asked for help, no mention of requesting an escort, and the FBI did arrive at the arrival gate and take control. The Captain has the final word so if he asked for an escort....so be it....I don't think it was required and probably really upset the passengers cause those whiz-bangers would not be following "line astern" out of visual range ...... they would be on the wingtips. If armed intervention is required, there are no options...there is only one solution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfhunter Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 In this situation, the decision to launch an intercept is way beyond the purview of the crew. Say or imply anything even close to potential cockpit breach and you can expect company. Would you expect otherwise? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kip Powick Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 51 minutes ago, Wolfhunter said: In this situation, the decision to launch an intercept is way beyond the purview of the crew. Say or imply anything even close to potential cockpit breach and you can expect company. Would you expect otherwise? No I wouldn't but the question is, and has not been answered in any articles.....that the crew told ATC that there was an attempt to gain access to the cockpit. You assume that info was passed to ATC....yet there is no record that the pilots passed the "breach" comment to ATC. All that is reported is that they requested help, (upon landing) and the FBI showed up at the gate. My thought is......why would you ask for an armed escort if the subject has been restrained?......what is the purpose of the armed escort??? ( we all know but don't want to say it) Why subject passengers to more stress because I am sure not everyone knew exactly what was going on at the point of the disturbance. Looking out at fighter jets is not a comforting thought because if need be....they only have one purpose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 armed escort maybe just needed some stick time, and if so what the heck, no cost to perform a practice mission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airband Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 Quote 'The two F-16s shadowed the Sunwing plane all the way to Toronto, said Captain Jennifer Stadnyk, of North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). She said it was standard protocol for military planes to escort planes if there is uncertainty aboard the flight.' Sunwing Flight Receives Jet Escort After Passenger Threat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st27 Posted May 21, 2017 Share Posted May 21, 2017 I wonder if the 2 AA pilots were packing?? Part of the FFDO program? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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