A United Airlines flight bound for Denver after a passenger ran toward the cockpit and was restrained by others aboard, according to air traffic control recordings.
No injuries were reported in the flight from Dulles International Airport on Monday night.
“We had a passenger becoming violent, no weapon involved,” a pilot told air traffic controllers according to a recording on LiveATC.net.
“He’s restrained by other passengers now, though. We don’t know his mental condition.”
“We just need to get on the ground,” the pilot said.
The pilot told controllers there was a “Level 2” disturbance, the second-lowest level of severity on a 1-to-4 threat scale.
Luke Punzenberger, a spokesman for United Airlines, said the flight had to turn around after a passenger “failed to comply with crew instructions.” He said local law enforcement officials met the aircraft at the gate and detained the passenger.
