Passenger Arrested in NYC Trying to Open Door on Plane During Flight

From the Santa Barbara New-Press:

DENVER, Colo. (AP) – A passenger tried to open a plane door during a Frontier Airlines flight on Saturday morning but was subdued by airline staff and passengers, an airline spokesman said.

Police and Transport Security Administration staff met Flight 514 after the plane landed in New York City and took the man into custody, said Frontier spokesman Joe Hodas.

Hodas said the man would not have been able to open the door even if he had not been subdued. ”You need special training to open the door,” he said.

There were 128 passengers and five crew members on the plane, Hodas said.

Passenger Bobby Vigil of Estes Park told KUSA-TV the man had been acting strangely. The man, whose name was not released, was restrained for the remainder of the flight.

”I turn around and hear the flight attendant yelling for someone to help her because he opened the back door of the plane. The whole rest of the flight, all the way in, he was yelling and trying to bite the tape, and they ended up restraining him with an extra lap belt,” said Vigil.

A surprisingly sparse account for so provocative a story. I wonder what he was telling that whole time? Anyone care to place any bets?