A 13-year-old boy traveling on an American Airlines flight was duct-taped to his seat after he became unruly mid-air. The boy also engaged in violent behavior with his mother during the flight.
Following the ruckus, the American Airlines flight from Maui to Los Angeles had to be diverted to Honolulu. Authorities, however, haven't revealed the name of the unruly boy.
Teen Tried To Kick Out the Flight's Window
The incident took place an hour after Airbus A321 took off at 12:44 p.m from Maui. Witness told CBS Los Angeles that the teen boy attempted to kick out the window next to his seat. He also became physically violent with his mother during the flight.
The viral video shows passengers helping the crew restrain the out-of-control teen and a male flight attendant using duct tape to tie the boy to the seat. Later, the flight attendant is seen running up the aisle with a roll of gray duct tape. However, no one was injured in the incident.
The outlet reported that the unruly passenger was taken into custody.
Flight Diverted to Honululu
According to the New York Post, in a statement issued by American Airlines spokesperson Laura Masvidal, the plane was diverted to Honolulu "due to an incident with a passenger on board," adding that "customers were re-accommodated on other flights or provided hotel accommodations."
"Safety and security is our top priority and we apologize to our customers for any inconvenience this caused," he added.
A few days ago, in a separate incident Maxwell Berry, a 22-year-old passenger was duct-taped to his seat after he assaulted a male flight attendant and groped breasts of two female attendants. A visibly drunk Berry was traveling on a Frontier flight from Philadelphia to Miami.
According to the outlet, a woman traveling on American Airlines flight from Dallas-Fort Worth to Charlotte, NC, was also duck-taped to her seat after she allegedly attacked the crew and tried to open the door of the plane.
The Business Insider reported that the Federal Aviation Administration released a report stating that it has so far investigated more than 600 reports of unruly passenger behavior in 2021 - almost double the combined number of incidents from previous years.
