From Staff and Wire Reports
HOUSTON - A Dallas-bound American Airlines flight was escorted Wednesday afternoon by F-16 fighter jets to Bush Intercontinental Airport after a disturbance was reported on board.
"It appears to be an attempted hijacking, but I do not have that confirmed," FBI agent Robert Doguim told KHOU-TV in Houston.
KHOU-TV Security vehicles escorted the American Airlines jet after it made an unscheduled landing at Bush Intercontinental Airport.
Ernie DeSoto, a spokesman for Houston Airport System, said two people of Middle Eastern descent were taken into custody by Houston police. Their names were not released.
Flight 1702, with 50 passengers on board, had been headed to Nashville with an intermediate stop at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
Passengers on the jet were being debriefed about what they saw. "Air marshals were on board," Mr. DeSoto said. "They didn't break their cover."
In Austin, Texas Land Commissioner David Dewhurst told TXCN the captain's decision to turn the plane around was based on the recommendation of a flight attendant.
"The behavior, the general behavior of one of the passengers made one of the flight attendants very, very nervous," Mr. Dewhurst said. "The captain made the decision in light of the alert that we're under to divert the plane and go back to Houston."
"The captain returned to Houston due to a potential security incident," said American spokesman Todd Burke. "Our reports indicate the passenger involved has been removed from the aircraft."
"We should find comfort in the fact that there were federal air marshals on that flight and the quick response from personnel assigned out at the airport," Mr. Doguim said. "There's no need to alarm anybody with misinformation. We have it under control."
The twin-engine jet involved in this incident has 111 seats and was built in 1993. American has 74 F100s in its fleet. This summer, the airline said it would be retiring the model within a year.
Dog... sadly walks away shaking his head.