A Detroit-bound flight from France was forced to make an emergency landing on a Canadian island after travelers were left contending with an unruly passenger who had broken free of restraints.
Delta flight DL97 took off from Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport Friday en route to the Detroit Metropolitan Airport in Michigan with 261 passengers. However, one of those, a 34-year-old American man, created a problem for the other 260 after reportedly bringing alcohol on board and becoming violent.
“I’m under arrest for what?” the man could be heard asking law enforcement officials as he was escorted off the flight after an emergency landing at Stephenville Dymond International Airport on the island of Newfoundland.
The video was captured by fellow passenger Dena Haddad who told the outlet, “There was someone being violent and they wouldn’t calm down. We just wanted to get here as soon as possible. It was just kinda scary at that little bit.”
The behavior had led airline personnel to restrain the passenger. However, sometime before the international flight could set down in Stephenville, the man broke free of his restraints leading five to six passengers to step in and hold the man until police could board and intercede.
A spokesperson for Delta issued a statement regarding the incident that read, “Delta has zero tolerance for unruly behavior, especially when it potentially compromises the safety of our customers and flight crew. This unruly customer was removed at Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador, and remanded to the custody of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.”
