A passenger on board a Spirit Airlines flight from Baltimore to Chicago ran to the back of a plane to report a man of apparent Middle Eastern descent for suspicious behavior — watching the news on a phone.
THEY DID WHAT? 8 STARS WHO GOT KICKED OFF PLANES
Four passengers, three men and a woman, from Flight 969 were consequently detained and the rest of the travelers called off the plane after the unidentified traveler watched video of a “concerning” nature before takeoff Tuesday morning, authorities said.
It’s unclear what the unidentified man was watching on his phone, but it was enough for the female passenger to grab her daughter and find a flight attendant.
“I don’t know of what nature it was,” Maryland Transportation Authority Police spokesman 1st Sgt. Jonathan Green told the Chicago Tribune. “But given current events, I can imagine what it was.”
The woman’s fears, likely fanned by the Paris terrorist attacks, prompted the flight crew to head back to the gate at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.
“The plane stopped immediately,” Jenna Farella told reporters after arriving in Chicago following a three-hour delay. “It was just dreadful.”
The plane did not depart until 9 a.m., after at least two police officers escorted the passengers and their carry-on baggage off the aircraft, a video of the incident shows.
A fourth passenger was called off the plane minutes later and an additional four to five passengers were then asked to disembark through the PA system.
The detained passengers were eventually released hours later without any charges, according to Maryland Transportation Authority Police.
Three of the passengers were described by Green as a husband, wife and their relative.
