The blush has long since fallen off the rose when it comes to airline travel for most Americans. What was once an exciting event that called for dressing up is now hardly more special than riding a bus. In fact, being crammed into an over-crowded flying can is an event many people dread, and sleeping through a flight is as good a coping mechanism as any.
If you’re a flight sleeper—or one of those people who completely tunes out with noise-canceling headphones and a book, movie, or Sudoku—you might want to rethink your strategy. These days air travel may be fraught with peril–between potential terrorists, unruly passengers, and crew members who inexplicably go off the rails–and often it’s up to the passengers to save the day.
Here are some examples of flights-gone-bad where it was the passengers who made it possible for everyone to land safely. The next time you’re flying to visit your parents in Cleveland and the guy next to you is fidgety and sweaty, keep these in mind:
The Jet Blue Pilot
You’ve probably heard about the recent breakdown of Jet Blue pilot Clayton F. Osbon on a flight from New York to Las Vegas, but did you know that it was ordinary passengers who were responsible for subduing him until the plane could land safely? After Cpt. Osbon began ranting incoherently in the cockpit, his heroic co-pilot, Jason Dowd, was able to get an off-duty pilot passenger into the cockpit before locking Osbon out. Of course, that left Osbon with the rest of the passengers, screaming about 9/11 and that the plane was going down. Luckily, a few alert passengers rushed Osbon, wrestling him to the floor and holding him down until the plane could safely land. Without passengers who were not only paying attention, but willing to step in, the end of the story might have been much different—and more tragic.
The Underwear Bomber
On December 25, 2009, a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit suddenly got very exciting when passengers heard a muffled firecracker-type pop, followed by the smell of smoke, which was caused by a bomb located in the pants of a Nigerian man. Though the first attempt to detonate the plane was a bust, the bomber was attempting to set off a second bomb when a passenger from the opposite row jumped over his seatmates and tackled the bomber, subduing him so that he could be restrained for the remainder of the flight and handed over to authorities. Imagine if the hero had his earphones on and his face buried in the latest Clive Cussler novel; it could have ended badly for everyone.
The Shoe Bomber
Perhaps one of the most dramatic stories of passengers taking control of a dangerous situation in-flight is that of the infamous shoe bomber, Richard Reid, who attempted to blow up an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami by detonating an explosive hidden in his shoe. As Reid was lighting the fuse leading to the bomb, a flight attendants attempted to stop him, but he successfully fought her off. Before the second attendant to could come to her aid, several passengers intervened, pulled him down, and tied him up with plastic handcuffs, seatbelt extensions, and headphone cords. Another passenger, a physician, was able to tranquilize Reid with medication found in the airline emergency medical kit until the plane landed and authorities could take him away.
The Chicago Cockpit Stormer
An American Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Chicago took a terrifying turn when a man leaped up and rushed the cockpit, screaming, “We’re going to crash into the Sears Tower!” Edward Coburn actually made it inside the cockpit, which wasn’t locked, and caused the plane to swoop left and right before the two pilots, with the help of four male passengers, were able to subdue him. Another passenger, Chicago nurse Carviz Carlos, administered a sedative from the airline’s medical kit, which calmed Coburn until the plane landed. Coburn wasn’t a terrorist, just a victim of mental illness, but the danger was every bit as great–especially since the cockpit was unlocked.
