ALERT: Florida- Air Canada Flight Diverted to Orlando (May 17, 2017)

May 17, 2017

A passenger on an Air Canada flight from Jamaica to Toronto attacked cabin crew and tried to open the cabin door. The flight was diverted Monday night to the Orlando International Airport.

The Washington Post reports:

An Air Canada flight from Jamaica to Toronto was diverted to Orlando, Florida, after authorities say a passenger became aggressive, attacked the crew with coffee pots and tried to open the cabin door.

A federal criminal complaint says crew members and other passengers secured Brandon Michael Courneyea using zip ties. Orlando television station WFTV reports the FBI was contacted about 7:30 p.m. Monday.

The Orlando Sentinel writes:

The incident began after the flight started experiencing turbulence and the pilot turned the seat belt sign on. Passenger Brandon Michael Courneyea, 34, of Canada, started yelling at other people for “looking at him,” according to a federal complaint.

Flight attendants tried to calm him down, but to no avail. He got up and started walking around the plane.

“Courneyea then stated that it would only take one guy to take the plane down and that he wanted to take everyone with him,” the complaint said.

He went to the back of the plane, grabbed a pot of coffee and swung it at flight attendants, the complaint said.

“When confronted [by the flight attendant], Courneyea lunged for the rear cabin exit door and began to pull the door lever up to open the door. [He] then was restrained by crew members and fellow passengers on the aircraft,” a complaint said.

According to the Toronto Sun:

Crew members contacted authorities prior to landing in Orlando, where FBI agents took Courneyea into custody. Courneyea is charged with assault or intimidation of a flight crew member and interfering with the performance of duties.

Please contact the PR Team if you have any questions or concerns: TravelLeadersGroupPR@TravelLeaders.com.