Airplane passenger opens emergency door and is arrested after long tarmac delay
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After a long delay on the tarmac last week, an unruly flight passenger became enraged and even pulled open the plane’s emergency door, according to a video that went viral.
The poster for the video, which appeared on a Reddit forum in late April, said the incident occurred on a Chicago-bound flight departing from Atlanta (audio can be heard at the top of this article).
According to the Reddit poster, storms in the Southeast “caused the aircraft to remain on the tarmac for a period of time.”
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Reached for comment, a Delta spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the incident occurred on a 168-passenger plane that was waiting on the tarmac due to a storm. The police removed the passenger who did not comply with the rules from the scene.
“The safety of our customers and crew comes first, and Delta has zero tolerance for unruly behavior,” the official also said. “We apologize to our customers on this flight for the delay in their travel.”
A passenger who allegedly opened the emergency door during the plane’s long delay due to a storm (not pictured) was removed by law enforcement. (Aaron E. Martinez/The Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images)
In the video, the man can be seen arguing with flight attendants that the flight was three or four hours late, and further delays could be in store.
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“Take me to the door, I want to get off!” he said. “Or else I’ll pull myself away.”
The man is seen swinging the plane door open and the attendant shouts, “Oh my God.”
The outage came after storms in the Southeast caused significant delays on a flight departing from Atlanta. (iStock)
“‘My god!’ Who are you?” he responded.
“It doesn’t exactly matter,” he added. “You know who’s important? Me. I told you idiots.”
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The pilot then came in via the intercom and informed the man and others that the plane would return to the gate.
“Good idea!” said the man, first cutting the video and then cutting it off.
“I don’t agree with what he did, but I can understand it.”
The Reddit poster said the man was arrested when the plane arrived at the gate.
“When they turned to the door, they met him. [by] airport police/air marshals,” the user wrote.
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“An argument broke out, he threw his luggage at the flight attendant and he was arrested.”
Commentators widely criticized the man’s behavior.
The airline reiterated its zero-tolerance policy for irregular behavior following the reported disturbance on board. (iStock)
“Yes, this guy is a delusional narcissist,” one person said.
“You can keep her Atlanta,” another wrote. “Sincerely, [a] A guy from Chicago.”
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Some commenters said they understood the individual’s frustration.
“I don’t agree with what he did, but I can understand,” one commenter said. “The airline shouldn’t be allowed to keep you locked on the tarmac for this long.”
A Delta spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the incident occurred on a flight with 168 passengers. (Piotr Swat/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
“As someone who has been stuck on the tarmac on a plane with no air conditioning, I have to say I understand the overwhelming desire to get off,” another user wrote. “No one on that plane did what this man did, but I’m sure we all thought about it.”
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“Of course people shouldn’t act like this… but there also needs to be a limit to how long an airline can hold a plane full of people hostage on the runway,” a third user said. he said.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Atlanta Police Department for additional information.
