Flight Attendant Restrained After 9/11 Rant
An American Airlines jet about to take off was halted after a flight attendant began “ranting” about 9/11 and claiming that the plane was about to crash.
Chicago-bound Flight 2332 had departed the gate at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport this morning and was preparing for takeoff when, according to a law enforcement officer, a female flight attendant began talking on the plane’s public address system about mechanical problems. Her speech also included “ranting” about 9/11, according to CBS station KTVT in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas.
“The flight attendant started repeating her sentences over and over again, (and) wanted us to have our seats even though we were in our seats,” Stephen Termunde, who was a passenger in the 11th row, told CBS News.
Another flight attendant tried to calm others on board, as the woman continued to talk about the airline’s bankruptcy. Many passengers said that she began to become incoherent.
“It was almost like she was talking and didn’t realize the PA was on. We thought well maybe she’s just talking to someone in the back, but no one was responding. Then we she said ‘crash’ twice. We knew something was wrong,” Termunde said.
Some passengers helped to restrain the flight attendant. Two other crew members were reportedly injured in the altercation.
“She was in a manic state,” Brad LeClear, one of the passengers who helped subdue the flight attendant, told CBS News. “She mentioned things about being bipolar. I asked her if she took lithium, she said yes. I asked her if she took it today, she said no.”
“Obviously, she was not herself,” he added.
One of the flight attendants was reportedly fighting police as she was put in a police car, reported KTVT.
The airline said both flight attendants were taken to a hospital for treatment, but American did not say for what they were being treated. An airport spokesman told the Associate Press that no state criminal charges are being considered.