A man causes panic on Southwest Airlines flight to Atlanta after jumping out emergency exit.
A passenger on a Southwest Airlines flight was arrested on Sunday night in New Orleans after allegedly escaping the plane through the emergency hatch and running away on the tarmac at the Louis Armstrong Airport.
According to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office (JPSO), who arrested the man, the Southwest Airlines plane was still parked at the terminal and had not yet initiated the run up for take-off when the passenger made their dangerous escape.
Southwest flight WN3172 was still parked at the gate and was attached to the jetbridge when the man unexpectedly opened one of the overwing emergency exits – which aren’t guarded by flight attendants.
The ensuing panic prompted the flight attendants to order a so-called ‘rapid disembarkation’ in which passengers are deplaned as quickly as possible onto the jetbridge without calling for a full-scale evacuation.
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office confirmed to local media that the suspect had been arrested and taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation.