New video shows terrifying moment when ‘violent’ passenger was led from flight Paris to Detroit

A passenger aboard a Delta flight recalled the harrowing moment his plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Newfoundland after a man who had reportedly been violent broke away from the crew restraining him.

Delta Flight 97 was en route from Paris to Detroit when the captain announced they would land on the Canadian island at the private airport used during 9/11 because of an “unruly passenger.”

Nicolas Fougere told Dailymail.com he was shocked and concerned after hearing the announcement. He wondered how serious it must be that the plane landed long before their final destination.

“We knew something bad had happened, but we didn’t think it was so serious that someone had to be taken off the flight before they got to their final destination,” he said. “I was very worried in that hour before we landed. We were all relieved when he was taken off the plane.’

The plane landed Friday afternoon at Stephenville Dymond Airport and the 34-year-old passenger was taken into custody by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. His identity has not been released, it is unclear what charges he is facing.

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Fougere said the person sitting next to him on the plane had been trying to go to the bathroom when she saw the man arguing with another passenger. She was told by the crew to go to another bathroom.

The crew tried to restrain the man, who was reportedly “violent” during the flight and “didn’t want to calm down” during the journey from Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris, France.

But the man broke free from the crew’s handcuffs and attempted to flee down the aisle, but was stopped by several passengers who tackled him.

“Who knows what would have happened if they hadn’t intervened,” he said. “I’m just very grateful to those people and the crew.”

For the next hour, passengers on the Delta flight anxiously waited to land in Newfoundland.

“It was an hour, but it felt a lot longer,” said Fougere.

The emergency diversion took place six hours into the flight, landing at Stephenville Dymond Airport on the Canadian island of Newfoundland around 3:35 p.m.

Fougere shared a video with Dailymail.com of the man marching down the aisle and stepping out of the Airbus A330-300 plane with 261 passengers on board.

“What am I under arrest for?” he is heard asking in the video.

Fougere said he also heard the man say to other passengers in a slightly sarcastic tone, “Oh, apparently I’m a threat to everyone on this plane.”

The man was ushered from the aircraft and led down the stairs where he was greeted and taken into custody by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Randy Alexander, a local Newfoundland man, posted photos of the emergency landing showing authorities escorting the man from the plane.

The flight left for Detroit about 90 minutes later much to the relief of passengers.

Fougere said that despite the delays, his fellow passengers were just relieved the man was off the plane.

“Everyone on the plane is very understanding,” he said. “We were safe and that’s what mattered.”

A Delta spokesperson said: “Delta has zero tolerance for unruly behavior, especially when it could jeopardize the safety of our customers and flight crew.

“This unruly customer was evacuated to Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador, and returned to the custody of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.”

Stephenville Dymond Airport in Newfoundland has been in the news before, most notably on 9/11 when several planes made unscheduled landings after North American airspace was closed. The city provided shelter for about 3,000 passengers for a week after the attacks.

Unruly passengers can compromise the safety of others on board a flight, so unplanned landings are not uncommon.

A United flight was forced to turn back three hours in April after a “disruptive” passenger sat in an attendant’s seat and started yelling at the crew.

In February, an American Airlines flight made an emergency landing after a passenger who had been refused a drink stormed towards the cockpit.

And a “drunken” and “aggressive” woman, aboard a flight bound for Las Vegas, was kicked off the plane last month for disorderly conduct and yelling at other passengers.