Warplanes escort jet after passenger's threat
A passenger plane was turned back to Los Angeles escorted by US Air Force jet fighters after a passenger allegedly uttered an anti-American threat during a confrontation with flight attendants.
The unidentified man and his travelling companion on Air Canada Flight 792 to Toronto were handed over to the FBI, said Nicole Couture-Simard, spokeswoman for Air Canada in Montreal.
‘‘Shortly after departure a male passenger was apprehended smoking in the lavatory,’’ she said. ‘‘The passenger became verbally abusive and uttered an anti-American threat.’’
Couture-Simard would not describe the threat.
FBI spokeswoman Laura Bosley could not immediately give details on the passenger.
The Boeing 767 landed safely about half an hour after takeoff, authorities said.
Couture-Simard said it was not necessary to restrain the passenger: ‘‘The pilot elected to return to Los Angeles as a precautionary measure only.’’
There were 145 people on the plane, including a crew of seven, an airport spokeswoman said. Passengers were booked on the next flight.
Two F-16s escorted the Air Canada flight into the airport, authorities said.
Who contacted the jets was not immediately clear, but Air Force jets normally respond to civilian incidents only at the request of the Federal Aviation Administration, said Major Barry Venable, spokesman for the North American Aerospace Defence Command.
