Delta plane traveling from DC to LA is diverted to Oklahoma City after male passenger assaults flight attendant and an air marshal on board
- Delta flight DL342 took off from Washington DC’s Ronald Reagan National Airport at 5:16pm Eastern Time, bound for Los Angeles
- A passenger onboard, described as a man in his 30s, reportedly became unruly and menaced a flight attendant en route
- An air marshal then intervened, and the passenger assaulted the air marshal
- The flight was diverted to Oklahoma City where the passenger was taken off the plane in handcuffs
- It then carried on to Los Angeles, where it was expected to land two hours late, at 10:17pm Pacific Time
- Delta in a statement praised their crew and apologized for the delayed landing in Los Angeles
A Delta flight from Washington DC to Los Angeles was diverted on Thursday evening after a passenger attacked a flight attendant, and then turned on an air marshal.
Flight DL342 took off from Reagan National Airport at 5:16pm local time, but a mid-air altercation broke out.
The plane had to be diverted to Oklahoma City, and the male suspect aged in his 30s was taken off the plane in handcuffs, CBS reported.
The flight then continued to Los Angeles, where it was scheduled to land at 10:17pm Pacific Time – two hours late.
Delta flight DL342 took off from Washington DC at 5:16pm local time on Thursday, bound for Los Angeles
The plane was forced to make an unscheduled emergency landing in Oklahoma City after a man in his 30s on board the plane attacked a flight attendant and an air marshal
Bayne Bunce, 59, told Axios that he was on the plane and answered a call to assist federal air marshals.
He said he saw a man trying to ‘get at’ a flight attendant.
Captain Arthur Gregory with Oklahoma City police said an air marshal attempted to take the suspect into custody after he ‘assaulted a flight attendant,’ but he ‘proceeded to assault the air marshal.’
The officer and the flight attendant did not sustain any serious injuries, CBS reported, and did not require hospitalization.
‘Delta applauds the quick action and professionalism of the crew and Federal Air Marshals on Delta flight 324 from Washington, D.C. to Los Angeles, which diverted to Oklahoma City after a customer became unruly and was removed from the flight by local law enforcement,’ Delta Airlines said in a statement.
‘We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience.’
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed the diversion to Axios in an email and said it ‘investigates every unruly passenger report it receives from the airlines.’
Violent incidents on airplanes have soared since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, largely due to passenger frustrations at measures in place to stem the spread, including compulsory masks while in the air, except when eating or drinking.
Delta in a statement praised the actions of their on-board crew. The flight attendant and air marshal were not seriously harmed in the incident
According to the New York Post, a survey undertaken last month found 85 per cent of flight attendants had been confronted by unruly passengers during the pandemic.
It also found that nearly one in five had been attacked.
The FAA has received more than five thousand complaints about unruly passengers so far this year, and has investigated more than one thousand incidents – over five times more than in 2020.
It is not clear whether the man’s rage on Thursday’s flight was due to COVID-19 measures. Axios reported that he was not wearing a face mask when he was arrested.