A newly released video showed the stunning moment an “anxious” Alaska Airlines flier opened an emergency exit and climbed up the wings of the plane away from unsuspecting Washington state airport employees.
The woman opened the emergency exit door shortly after Flight 323 from Milwaukee landed on the runway and pulled into the gate of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport around 5 p.m. on December. 22.
The footage showed the flyer in what appeared to be a red shirt and dark pants walking with an arm-length backpack near the windows, looking down and then waving his hands in the air, according to a video obtained by KIRO 7.
Two members of the operation crew walking near the plane apparently did not notice the escaped passenger.
At least two baggage carts passed her without stopping.
The passenger spent approximately a minute on the wing before two food workers in a catering vehicle spotted the woman.
It took 90 seconds before someone on the plane poked their head out and six minutes before a person barely stepped on the wing to talk to him.
The woman sat on the wing for about 11 minutes and 30 seconds until firefighters were able to help her use a ladder to get out of the wing.
A number of police cars and authorized vehicles were at the scene when her feet finally touched the ground.
A spokesperson for the Port of Seattle revealed to KIRO 7 that the woman “became distressed” while disembarking.
A police crisis team determined the woman needed to be medically evaluated, according to the outlet.
Alaska Airlines confirmed to the news station that there was an incident involving a “disruptive guest” that was resolved safely.
“We are working with our crew and airport officials to gather more details about what may have happened,” the airline told KIRO 7. “We thank our employees for their quick response and apologize for any inconvenience that may have caused our guests.”
The incident happened just days before Christmas during what AAA predicted would be a “record travel” weekend as people went home to loved ones for the holidays.
The FBI is now involved in the case.
No charges have been filed yet, and aviation expert Scott Hamilton told KIRO that she may not face any charges at all.
“If somebody has an anxiety episode or has some kind of mental capacity issue and clearly doesn’t have any intention of that, you just go with the flow, so to speak,” Hamilton told KIRO 7. “And [what] would that be the point of accusing that person?”
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