Posted on 03/09/2022 9:06:17 AM PST by nickcarraway
Offbeat 10-Year-Old's Prank Causes Hijacking Scare On Alaska Airlines Flight By Binitha Jacob 03/08/22 AT 6:40 AM Pause Mute Current Time?0:27 Duration?0:49 QualityHD Fullscreen 'Drunk' American arrested after assaulting staff and passengers on flight from Japan KEY POINTS The Alaska Airlines flight from Seattle was held for an hour at the Orlando airport Passengers saw cops surrounding the plane with guns as a family was led off the aircraft Officials realized the threat was caused by a 10-year-old's prank on a fellow passenger Hijacking fears gripped officials and passengers aboard an Alaska Airlines flight following which the plane was held on the taxiway for about an hour. That was until officials discovered the threat was sparked by a prank pulled off by a 10-year-old child.
The Alaska Airlines Flight 16 took off from Seattle and had landed at Orlando International Airport on Sunday evening, according to airport spokeswoman Carolyn Fennell. Airport officials received a tip from operation staff on the aircraft about a potential hijacking threat onboard, News 6 WKMG reported.
The flight was held on the tarmac for about an hour during the investigation, according to NY Daily News. Passengers saw cops surrounding the aircraft with guns and watched as a family was escorted off the plane.
“The mother was bawling clear, profusely apologizing to everybody,” passenger Logan D’Amato told WFTV. The remaining passengers were then allowed to exit the plane after the 3,000-mile flight.
Fennell said cops responded to the incident out of caution and eventually found out it was a hoax. Sources said the child sent a message to another passenger via AirDrop about the plane being hijacked.
“The parents were saying, ‘Sorry, this is my kid’ and they all just had to leave,” passenger Tyler Woods told News 6 WKMG.
Fellow passenger Jill Reed told the outlet, “Especially with everything going on in the world right now. Being on the tarmac for an hour kind of made for a very long day.”
No charges will be filed in connection with the incident, the FBI said Monday.
“I’ve never seen a threat from a 10-year-old, unless it was something where they weren’t getting their ice cream with the dinner,” retired pilot Rich Owen told WFTV.
“Every threat that you get on board an aircraft, you have to treat as a serious issue,” he added.
RELATED STORIES Woman Sneaks In COVID-Positive 4-Year-Old Daughter On Flight To New Zealand, Faces Charges Woman Gives Birth To Baby On Flight To Washington D.C. The airlines reportedly shared a statement after the incident: “After Alaska Airlines flight 16 from Seattle landed in Orlando, it parked remotely because of a potential threat that was later deemed non-credible. Police boarded and cleared the aircraft. The plane continued to its gate and passengers deplaned as normal. We take safety seriously and we apologize for the inconvenience for our guests.”
I know it’s not funny but...
I’ll bet that passenger who received the Child’s fake message
feels ridiculous. 10 years old is old enough to know better.
He probably comes from a home where the parents ‘don’t believe in’ (fully) punishing the child for anything they do.
At most, he may get the Gigabyte capacity on his cell phone reduced for a week. So there!!
kids an idiot.
Definitely old enough to know. These little shits start using phones at age 5 and they know how to use them better than adults......
This sounds like something I would have done at 10 years old. I’m sure he has learned his lesson now.
Why would the passenger who received the message feel silly? Not like he knows who is delivering him this message. Besides that, he was never identified. I’ll bet he’s angry as a wet hen for having to sit an hour on the tarmac. He probably will never report it again, should he ever receive another similar message like that.
What was the prank?
Tech Question: How did the little boy send a message to a complete stranger? Are there programs where you could send a msg to anyone within a small radius?
Or did he just post it anonymously on Twitter and sat back to watch somebody gobble up the bait?
Axing 4 a Frnd.
What did he do, type, “Hi, Jack!”?
LOL.
Reminds me of that time I took my dog “Shark” to the beach, and people didn’t appreciate it when he disappeared and and I had to find him...
We hosted a family at our vacation home in Naples, Florida for a week. My son’s 10 y.o. best friend, his parents and a sibling.
Within an hour of their arrival, around five police cars rolled up - cops surrounding the house. Luckily the front door was unlocked as they quickly beat on the door and entered.
Long story short, after we showed the kids their bedrooms, the guest children proceeded to call 911 over and over again, hanging up each time.
The kids had never had access to a phone in their room before and didn’t know any other number to call! At least that was the excuse.
Put a real damper on the week from the get go.
Why? Can't anyone just use their brains anymore?
However, I can provide somewhat of the steps it would take to accomplish that.
The child would require knowledge that enables him to search for a signal, within the plane, of another user on their phone. Then determine that person's phone number. Next would be creating a text to that phone number, and sending it.
But to remain anonymous, one would also have to know how to ensure that information identifying them, is suppressed.
For all I know, there may be an app(lication) that does what I described, in which case he just uses that app. 🙂
Dang...10 years old.
The rest of his life is a long time to be on the No Fly List.
That makes sense. Even I, a Computer-Resistor can understand it. I understand that process because that what many people do to receive WiFi or the Net when away from home. (Not me!)
If your connection to WiFi or other is not secure, others can ‘hitch a ride’ on your connection, and do so free of charge.
Years ago and pre-911 we were on a flight during bad weather and my wife is not a good flyer in the best of times. The plane is bouncing, my wife is stressing and stressing me out. Two young ladies directly behind us started making crash and bomb jokes. I remember telling them that I’d be happy to buzz a stewardess so they could share their jokes with her.
Tip: if you travel with a bad flyer, tell them to watch the stewardesses. If its rocky flying and they’re walking around, it’s not a big deal.
Well, since I have macular degeneration, I have to use a PC with a big screen and a magnifying glass, and it is wired to the modem. Getting old it so much fun. 🙂 In other words, even though I have a smart phone, I only use it if I am out on the road and need to get help. Thank goodness I still have enough eyesight to drive, but it was really difficult to pass that eye exam.😋 Otherwise, I use my landline phone.
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