A flight from Southwest Airlines heading to South Florida had to be diverted to Atlanta airport on Friday night after a potential security incident was reported on board.
Subsequently, the authorities and the airline itself confirmed that it was all a misunderstanding related to a passenger's behavior.
Flight 2094 had taken off from Nashville, Tennessee, heading to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport when the crew decided to land at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport as a precautionary measure.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initially indicated that the plane was diverted after a disturbance was reported during the flight.
Southwest Airlines later explained that the decision to change the flight's destination was made to ensure the safety of the passengers while the situation was clarified.
“The crew of Southwest Airlines flight 2094 made the decision on Friday to divert to Atlanta, out of an abundance of caution, due to what ultimately turned out to be a misunderstanding regarding a customer's behavior”, the airline stated in a press release.
“We sincerely apologize to our customers for the misunderstanding and the significant delay. For Southwest, nothing is more important than the safety of our customers,” they added.
According to NBC News, the incident originated from a misunderstanding related to an alarm set on the passenger's phone.
The device was set up to remind him when to pray during Ramadan, which raised concerns among some travelers and led to a report of a possible threat.
Videos circulating on social media show the tense moments inside the plane as the aircraft was diverted to Atlanta.
In one of them, shared by the page Only In Dade, several passengers can be seen with their hands raised and heads bowed as security agents enter the plane and remove one of the occupants.
Other videos captured crew members instructing passengers to keep their hands visible as they prepared for landing.
Additional images showed authorities checking the area around the plane with tracking dogs after its arrival at the airport.
There was no real threat
After reviewing the situation, the Atlanta Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) determined that there was no credible threat and confirmed that no charges would be filed in the case.
Southwest reiterated that the incident was due to "a misunderstanding regarding a customer's behavior."
After the intervention of the authorities, the passengers were relocated to another aircraft with the same flight number to complete the journey to South Florida.
The plane finally arrived at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport just before 3:30 AM on Saturday.
"We appreciate the professionalism of our crew and extend our sincerest apologies to our customers for the significant delay," stated a spokesperson for Southwest.
"For Southwest, nothing is more important than the safety of its customers and employees," they concluded.
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