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Home » American Airlines » A Genuinely Scary Incident On American Airlines
American Airlines

A Genuinely Scary Incident On American Airlines

Matthew Klint Posted onNovember 12, 2020November 14, 2023 19 Comments

an airplane parked at an airport

Lately we’ve been reading all sorts of stories about poor passenger behavior related to masks or drunkenness. While somewhat concerning, neither really rise to the level of being scary. But a cryptic incident that took place earlier today on American Airlines rises to that level.

Scary: Cryptic Incident Onboard American Airlines

A man was detained at Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) after his American Airlines flight, AA2392 from Orlando (MCO), arrived at 9:30am. Police initially said that the unidentified man tried to break into the flight deck area during the flight.

But the police later issued a correction noting he had not tried to physically gain access to the cockpit. So what happened? According to the police:

“The subject allegedly told one of the flight attendants that he wanted to speak with the pilot upon approach, approximately 80 miles out of PHL – and then subsequently ran back to his seat.”

Now I don’t know about you, but that’s a genuinely scary, unlike a sloshed passenger without a mask. The plane was descending and minutes from the airport. For what purpose would this man want to speak to the captain? And then you run back to your seat?

A male passenger and male flight attendant sat down next to the passenger until the aircraft landed. There was no further incident onboard the Airbus A321.

After being interviewed by police, the man was taken to a hospital for observation.

American Airlines confirmed that the man was “making alarming statements” and “exhibiting erratic behavior.” A spokesperson added:

“The cabin crew took precautionary measures and monitored the customer who remained seated for the remainder of the flight. Upon arrival at the gate, Philadelphia police met the aircraft and placed the individual in custody.”

CONCLUSION

A man who demands to speak to the captain as the plane is landing and then sprints back to his seat before a flight attendant can respond is going to get my heart racing. In fact, my heart races even just thinking about it. Perhaps I’m still part of the cursed 9/11 generation (remember, terrorism is more about instilling fear than actually inflicting physical harm), but this incident just does not sit well with me.

Would this man have raised your alarm bells or would you have brushed it off?

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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19 Comments

  1. Gene Reply
    November 12, 2020 at 4:56 pm

    @ Matthew — Sounds like the guy just needs mental help. Was his name Donald?

    • Steve Reply
      November 12, 2020 at 5:10 pm

      He wanted to inspect the cargo area for illegal votes being shipped from urban counties in Florida to Philadelphia! lol

      Let’s get that conspiracy theory going.

    • Daniel Reply
      November 12, 2020 at 9:29 pm

      No, his name was Joe

  2. CHRIS Reply
    November 12, 2020 at 5:52 pm

    Doesn’t sound like he committed a crime. It can be assumed that the flight attendant told him “no” and to return to his seat which he seemingly did without incident. It’s not illegal to be crazy. I’d lawyer up if I were him.

  3. Billy Bob Reply
    November 12, 2020 at 5:52 pm

    What a waste of a minute that was.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      November 12, 2020 at 7:09 pm

      I’ve instructed our refunds department to issue you a refund immediately.

      • emercycrite Reply
        November 14, 2020 at 1:59 am

        LOL

  4. Niko David Reply
    November 12, 2020 at 6:35 pm

    I see nothing wrong with this. I work with a lot of strange people. He didn’t say anything explicit, or anything like that.

    He shouldn’t have been placed into custody.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      November 12, 2020 at 7:09 pm

      Perhaps not, but asking that question and running does not sit well with me.

  5. Hugh Jass Reply
    November 12, 2020 at 7:19 pm

    “that’s a genuinely scary, unlike a sloshed passenger without a mask”

    You don’t think a drunken passenger with no mask is “a genuinely scary”? Personally, I’d be more worried about that.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      November 12, 2020 at 7:20 pm

      Perhaps, but I’m not so bothered by masks or drunks.

  6. Santastico Reply
    November 12, 2020 at 11:32 pm

    Well, we turned ourselves in a bunch of snowflakes. Anything you say, any way you act, etc… it raises concerns, suspicions, etc… Yes, the guy is a bit weird but this is nothing very scary. The world is indeed very boring nowadays.

  7. Stuart Reply
    November 12, 2020 at 11:52 pm

    Gotta admit, Matthew, as much as I respect you, your title in comparison to the actual story was a bit of, well, a yawn. Not even a story. But since you mentioned issuing refunds? 🙂

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      November 13, 2020 at 12:07 am

      That bad? Ok, I can take it from you.

      • Tennen Reply
        November 13, 2020 at 3:31 pm

        @Matthew, I have to agree with the others that the title and the story are horribly mismatched. I think one of your sub-headings would’ve been far more appropriate for the title: “Cryptic Incident Onboard American Airlines.” Perhaps “Strange” or “Questionable” would’ve worked as well.

        I was expecting something genuinely scary, like a hijacking attempt, near-miss, dual engine flameout, etc.

        You rarely have click-bait titles/posts, but unfortunately, this one came across as one. On the plus side, this probably filled your quota for the next year or two. ;-p

        • Matthew Klint Reply
          November 13, 2020 at 4:17 pm

          Well-noted Tennen.

  8. Kevin Reply
    November 13, 2020 at 9:14 am

    I was on that flight – It was a distinguished older white guy, and he didn’t say he wanted to talk to the pilot, he said he wanted to sniff the pilots hair. Then he forgot why he was standing there and ran back to his seat. This was PHL, so the former VP was released on his own recognizance.

    Simple mistake, nothing to see here, move along…

    • Paulo Lavigne Reply
      November 16, 2020 at 9:11 pm

      The story has nothing to do with the title, which is overdramatic.

  9. James Reply
    November 14, 2020 at 11:12 am

    Harmless nut case…. Case closed.

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