Lufthansa passenger threatens to open plane door

A man aboard a Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt to Belgrade has been arrested Sunday after threatening to open a plane door during the flight, Serbian authorities said.

Belgrade-based media reported earlier today that a Jordanian citizen with USA passport had attempted to break into the cockpit of a Lufthansa plane en route from Frankfurt to Belgrade, but passengers managed to put him under control.

It said the man suddenly got up during the flight, banged on the cockpit door and demanded to be allowed to enter, threatening to open one of the Airbus A319’s external doors while it was flying over Austria.

Tabloid daily Kurir said the man complained that he had lost his mind and wanted to take them all together with him to Allah.

Bartels declined to provide details of the passenger’s identity or nationality, or what the man said during the incident.

Two handball players – who were travelling on the flight – guarded the suspect until the flight touched down in Serbia, where he was handed over to the authorities.

Passengers said the man acted irrationally from the start of the flight.

Mr Bartles stressed that the door the man was trying to open was not to the cockpit.

“About halfway into the flight he tried to open a plane door, but the cabin crew stopped him”, Djukic told Blic.

“There was no threat to the safety of the flight”, the spokesman said, adding that the man was arrested by Serbian police after the LH 1406 service landed on time in Belgrade.