Apr 10, 2025 07:45 PM IST
An American Airlines flight returned to New York after a passenger attempted to enter the pilot’s cabin, triggered by a meal dispute.
An American Airlines flight was forced to divert back to New York just hours after takeoff due to a disruptive passenger who tried to “barge into the pilot’s cabin.” The Milan-bound plane, which departed around 7 pm on Monday, had to return to the John F. Kennedy’s International Airport following an unruly flyer’s temper tantrum over an in-flight meal, CBS News reported.
Unruly passenger throws fit over meal, forces American Airlines flight to divert back
AA Flight 198 was four hours into its eight-hour journey to Europe when the pilot announced that one of the 300 passengers onboard became furious after he did not receive his preferred meal. The unruly passenger was also told to move from his seat as he couldn’t sit in an exit row with a baby.
Recalling the incident, passenger Krystie Tomlinson told the outlet that she “noticed a scuffle in the back.” “They were asking around if there were any police officers or Army members, or somebody who could help because there were no air marshals on,” she said, adding that the man “was charging at the stewardesses.”
“At some point, he charged past all of our seats and tried to barge into the pilot’s cabin,” Tomlinson continued before revealing that the “whole thing started because of a meal choice they didn’t get.”
“I guess they asked for it ahead of time. They never got exactly what they wanted. They also wanted to sit in an exit row. They had a baby with them, so they told them they couldn’t and apparently those two things are what pushed the person over the edge,” she added.
Despite the ordeal, the plane landed safely in New York at 3:30 am. The passengers were flown to Milan again on Tuesday around 11 am, about 16 hours after their initial takeoff. Meanwhile, the disruptive passenger was released without any criminal charges, per the outlet.
A representative for the airline told People, “The safety of our customers and team members is our top priority and we expect our customers to comply with federal regulations to follow crew member instructions. We never want to disrupt our customers’ travel plans and we thank them for their understanding.”
