SkyWest flight diverts to an Iowa airport after a passenger tried to open emergency exit
Cedar Rapids police said they were dispatched to the Eastern Iowa Airport around 6:15 p.m. July 17 to meet a flight that diverted after an in-air disturbance.
The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement on July 18 that SkyWest Airlines Flight 3612, operating as Delta Connection flight, took off from Eppley Airfield in Omaha, Nebraska and was headed to Detroit Metro Airport in Michigan when the incident occurred.
SkyWest Airlines did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's requests for comment. The airline said in a statement released to other outlets that it 'has zero tolerance for unruly behavior as safety for our customers and crew is our top priority," according to KWWL News 7 and KGAN.
Here's what we know about what happened on the SkyWest flight.
Passenger takes to social media to detail experience
A social media user, claiming to be a passenger, shared footage from the flight that shows the man being escorted off the flight.
'Safe travels out there folks,' wrote the X user who said he was on the flight. 'Got diverted to Cedar Rapids because this guy decided to try and open the exit row door then fight the flight crew and other passengers,' the post read.
Court records in Linn County, Iowa, accuse the passenger of shoving an individual and then threatening to kill him. He was also found with more than 40 prescription drug pills used to treat anxiety that were "not lawfully dispensed."
When responding to other social media users, the X user detailed what happened on the flight and said the man was seated in the emergency exit row and "refused to follow basic safety protocols." He ignored the flight attendant's instructions and became "verbally aggressive,' the user wrote.
As the plane was turning onto the runway, he stood up and unbuckled his seatbelt, and once the plane was in the air, passengers started yelling and hitting call buttons because he was "trying to open the cabin door midflight," the post read.
Records from the flight tracking site Flight Aware showed the plane landed in Cedar Rapids at 6:23 p.m. Central and left for Detroit at 8:12 p.m., with passengers arriving at their original destination at 10:35 p.m. Eastern
"We were grounded for over 2 hours while police took statements from crew and passengers, then we refueled and finally continued to Detroit," the X user continued. "Huge credit to the flight attendants, the pilot, and every passenger who stepped up."
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Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: SkyWest flight diverted in Iowa after mid-flight 'disturbance'
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