Passengers rose to the occasion and neutralized a grim threat from a crazed man who not only tried to open the emergency exit door mid-flight, but also took a flight attendant hostage with a knife he had saved from the in-flight meal.
Knife-Wielding Man Neutralized By Fellow Passengers On Raucous Copa Airlines Flight
It was an eventful Copa Airlines flight on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, from Brasilia (BSB) to Panama City (PTY) after a man became agitated about 30 minutes before landing on the 6-hour flight and tried to open the emergency exit door.
The man grabbed the plastic knife from his meal tray and briefly took a flight attendant hostage while walking toward the emergency door. The New York Post reports:
“A flight attendant started screaming, and another tried to hold him back, but couldn’t because he was too strong.”
But passengers immediately surrounded the man, pulled him away from the emergency exit door, and…to put it nicely…beat the pulp out of him. In fact, he almost lost consciousness. There’s video:
https://twitter.com/TheHeraldDiary/status/1854153966080180671
CM204 continued to PTY and landed safely, where police met the aircraft and arrested the man.
Copa downplayed the violence:
“The crew acted quickly and, with the assistance of some passengers, applied the necessary safety protocols to control the situation until landing in Panama. Thanks to the professionalism of the crew, the safety of the flight and passengers was protected.”
Yeah…I’d say the video shows the passengers stepping up and taking care of business.
And I’m thankful for this.
It’s something we see over and over again and why I believe that the US Federal Air Marshal program (and the equivalent in other nations) is not necessary…I do trust my fellow passengers to step up and believe that this case demonstrates why the best defense is always those around us (and whether it is simply out of self-interest or altruism, it seems to me that it does not matter…people will not tolerate disturbances like that on a flight).
I’m not naming the culprit or even necessarily condemning him. Sure, he could have an anger problem or it could be alcohol or drugs…but maybe it was something else so we can, at least now, separate the inappropriate act from the man who committed it.
But kudos to the passengers for stepping up and neutralizing the threat. When you play with fire, sometimes you get burned…welcome to the mile-high fight club.
image: @TheHeraldDiary/X // hat tip: View From The Wing
Realized Trump won and his deadbeat relatives will be coming home and counting on him for support.
@Dave … Yep . Even the Dems have now “realized Trump won” , so they are weeping and scheduling their therapy .
What happened to all the voter fraud? What about all the ‘illegal immigrants’ that were voting? What about all the voting machines that were changing votes? I’ve not heard a word about them since Trump was declared the winner.
You people are about to get the chaos and shit show you so desperately want and voted for in your tragic and pathetic little lives and most certainly deserve. You fools made your bed and now you get to sleep in it. I’m going to sit back and laugh at it all.
I can’t wait for the clown show of the next four years.
“I’m not naming the culprit or even necessarily condemning him.”
I condemn him
” Sure, he could have an anger problem or it could be alcohol or drugs…”
So get help. Shame on him for not seeking help.
“…but maybe it was something else so we can, at least now, separate the inappropriate act from the man who committed it.”
No. He deserved it. He should get punished for his actions.
This will also prevent future incidents. In countries where garbage (real garbage, not political garbage) like this is not tolerated people don’t do it. We must crack down on crime if we wish to live in a safe society.
There is no reason why a 10 year old should not be able to leave his bike outside his house for 5 minutes without it getting stolen or a woman should be afraid to go out after 9 o’clock…
We can do better, and this coming January is the time to finally remake the US terrific another time 🙂
@Moe … +1 . Yep : “we must crack down on crime if we wish to live in a safe society” , well said .
And there also is no reason why our children can be subjected to Dem trans-sex experiments in school .
Lol from one of the fools who just voted for a convicted felon sex offender to let him avoid jail and accountability for the dozens of crimes he’s committed over the last 9 years. And I’m fascinated by how obsessed the American fascists are with trans people….I wonder why?
You people are nothing more than white American trash and you know it.
He should’ve been beaten to death, Old Testament style.
Federal Air Marshals work a very small percentage of flights. Airlines should rethink the flight attendant hiring requirements. Since they are there primarily for safety, isn’t it time to find candidates that can truthfully fulfill that job ( without four attempts at certification )? Judging the physical condition of most Americans, I would not want to rely on random passengers to subdue a menace. The US is a litigious nation and if we must have in-flight intervention, airlines need to address this.
Flight attendants think they are there to continually look at their stupid mobile phones .
“beat the pulp out of him”. Welcome to Brazil! There is no BS with that people. LOL
@Santastico … Ironic because bossa nova is without doubt the most relaxing music .
Neutralized???? As in KILLED?????? Poor word choice on your part – as usual.
Neutralized does not necessarily mean killed. It means…wait for it…neutralized (i.e. to render ineffective or harmless by applying an opposite force or effect).
Intervening still works in other countries. In America though, you have a 50/50 shot of being prosecuted. And 100% if the culprit is black. Case in point, Daniel Penny.