- Did you witness the incident? Email miriam.kuepper@mailonline.co.uk
This is the moment a man was knocked to the ground and duct-taped by intrepid passengers after he tried to open the door mid-flight on an American Airlines plane bound for Chicago.
Footage shows five men on American Airlines Flight 1219 restraining the unruly passenger after he tried to open the emergency exit door 30 minutes after the plane took off from Albuquerque International Sunport.
Due to the incident, in which other passengers restrained the man with duct tape, the Boeing 737 had to return to New Mexico and landed in Albuquerque yesterday at 2:40 pm MST.
One of the intrepid passengers who confronted the man was Zach Etkind, host of the Barstool Sports series Donnie Does.
He shared images of the incident on tequila.
Did you witness the incident? Email miriam.kuepper@mailonline.co.uk
Footage shows five men on American Airlines Flight 1219 restraining an unruly passenger after he tried to open the emergency exit door 30 minutes after the plane departed Albuquerque International Sunport for Chicago.
An American Airlines crew member was seen on video using duct tape to restrain the unnamed man’s legs, as well as flexible handcuffs for his hands.
“Me and five other guys had to drag him into the hallway, tape his legs and put flexible handcuffs on him.”
After his heroic intervention, Etkind said Fox News: “There was too much going on at the time to panic, but it was very scary.”
He said he was about to fall asleep when the commotion around the unruly passenger caused him to jump out of his seat and help other travelers who were trying to subdue the man.
“So I jumped out of my seat, ran and we probably had about four or five guys trying to rip off this guy who was holding on and pulling the [emergency door] drive,” he added.
“Once we got him out of the door, we moved him into the hallway and we all held his legs and arms.”
Footage shows the unruly passenger being taken away and arrested by local law enforcement officers.
An American Airlines crew member was seen on video using duct tape to restrain the unnamed man’s legs, as well as flexible handcuffs for his hands.
The man was placed in an empty row of seats in the back of the plane until the plane landed in Albuquerque.
Footage shows him being taken away and arrested by local law enforcement officers.
The FBI’s Albuquerque Division is reportedly investigating the incident.
DailyMail.com has contacted American Airlines for comment.