Jet Blue passengers subdued a man after he opened an emergency door and tried to jump out of the aircraft during an apparent argument with his girlfriend.
The incident on JetBlue Flight 161, leaving Boston Logan International Airport for San Juan, Puerto Rico on Tuesday, resulted in the plane’s slide being deployed while the aircraft was on the taxiway at around 7.30pm.
Passengers, reportedly including an onboard FBI agent, managed to overpower the man on the Airbus A320 until officers with the Massachusetts State Police responded and detained him for further questioning.
A representative for JetBlue said the man opened the emergency overwing exit for unknown reasons. The flight was swapped for another aircraft and eventually left for San Juan, the airline spokesperson said. No injuries were reported.
The passenger has not been publicly identified but he was arrested and is scheduled to be arraigned in court on Wednesday in Massachusetts. It wasn’t immediately clear what the charges against him were.
The Federal Aviation Administration is now investigating the incident.
A passenger who spoke to WBZ-TV from the plane told the outlet the man had been embroiled in an argument with his girlfriend as the situation unfolded. He said the couple were sitting behind him on the plane.
“Boyfriend and girlfriend were arguing behind me,” passenger Fred Wynn said. “Boyfriend got mad, got up walked down the center aisle, grabbed the emergency door, ripped it off, completely off. FBI agent tackled him, handcuffed him. Shortly after, state police came on board and took him off.”
Passengers on other flights were reportedly delayed because of the incident.
State police said preliminary information indicates there was no active threat to the public, according to the outlet. The Independent has reached out to state police for comment.
