Twenty minutes into the flight from Denver to Houston, witnesses say the man was punching the seat in front of him.
HOUSTON — A Frontier Airlines flight from Denver to Houston turned chaotic Tuesday night when passengers had to restrain a disruptive man who cracked an interior window panel, according to witnesses on board.
The incident occurred approximately 20 minutes into the flight when the man began acting erratically, first punching the seat in front of him after its occupant requested to change seats. The situation escalated when he started kicking one of the plane’s windows, eventually damaging its interior panel.
“The flight attendants just disappeared, I guess they went to go get help,” said passenger Victoria Clark, who was seated across from the man with her 3-year-old daughter. “It seems like everyone in his row and in front of him kind of moved away. And so it’s just me and this man and I start freaking out. I’m having a panic attack, tears. I’m screaming like, ‘Somebody come help us.’ I’m scared.”
Several male passengers, including Clark’s fiancé who had been seated 15 rows away, intervened to subdue the distressed passenger. The group used shoelaces and flex cuffs to restrain the man for the remaining hour and a half of the flight.
The plane landed at Bush Intercontinental Airport at about 11 p.m.
The Houston Police Department has not released the identity of the disruptive passenger. According to authorities, Frontier Airlines has decided not to press charges at this time. The FBI is involved in the investigation.