A trio of United States Marines is being lauded after stepping up to subdue a hostile passenger on a flight from Tokyo to Dallas on Monday.
According to Greenville, North Carolina's WNCT-TV, Capt. Daniel Kult, Sgt. John Dietrick and Pfc. Alexander Meinhardt were all traveling from a Unit Deployment Program in Okinawa, Japan when the unidentified man allegedly barricaded himself in the bathroom and began making threatening comments.
The marines gathered outside of the bathroom while a flight attendant unlocked the door. When it opened, the men grabbed the unruly passenger and used flex ties to restrain him to a seat and kept watch as the flight was diverted to Los Angeles.
"We are well trained and it paid off today. We just assessed the situation and acted," Kult told WNCT-TV. "Working with the flight crew, we got the door open and from there worked together to subdue him. We didn't take time to talk it over. We just got ready and did what we needed to help."
"I knew I had to step in when he became a danger to others and himself," added Meinhardt. "I didn't think twice about helping restrain him through the rest of the flight."
Los Angeles Airport Police praised the men for their fearless efforts. "The three Marines were on-board and able to restrain the unruly passenger," a police spokesperson said. "Great job done by those Marines!"
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California and the FBI will investigate the incident.
Despite a dramatic decline in air travel due to the coronavirus pandemic, there have still been multiple incidents involving disruptive passengers this spring, including a brawl aboard a Spirit Airlines flight last week.
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