{"id":156459,"date":"2026-03-07T23:07:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T23:07:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/156459\/"},"modified":"2026-03-07T23:07:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T23:07:08","slug":"southwest-passenger-dragged-off-plane-after-security-threat-forces-unplanned-atlanta-landing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/156459\/","title":{"rendered":"Southwest passenger dragged off plane after security threat forces unplanned Atlanta landing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Harrowing footage shows the moment a passenger was removed from a flight, as a Southwest Airlines flight from Nashville to Fort Lauderdale was forced to divert and land in Atlanta Friday night due to a reported security threat.<\/p>\n

After redirecting from its original flight path to Florida, Southwest flight 2094 landed safely in Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport at 9:06 p.m. and a passenger was ejected from the flight by the Atlanta Police Department, FOX5 Atlanta reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In a video posted to X,<\/a> frightened passengers on the flight can be seen raising their hands above their heads, as the passenger in question is forcefully cuffed and dragged off plane by Atlanta police officers.<\/p>\n

Armed police officers in tactical gear can be seen yelling at the passenger, \u201cStand up, let\u2019s go, stand up,\u201d before they forcefully cuffed and dragged the man off the plane.<\/p>\n

Tennessee native Sarah Porter\u00a0\u00a0was on board the Southwest flight,\u00a0heading to Florida for spring break when the plane\u00a0suddenly\u00a0diverted.<\/p>\n

Porter, 15,\u00a0posted a video of the ordeal on\u00a0TikTok<\/a>, describing it as \u201cone of the scariest moments of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were told we were going to have an emergency landing 45 minutes into the flight but weren\u2019t told what was happening or where we were landing,\u201d Porter told The Post.<\/p>\n

The terrified teen said she only found out that \u201csomeone dangerous\u201d was on the flight when \u201cthe SWAT team showed up with their guns drawn\u201d and removed\u00a0a\u00a0man\u00a0seated three rows in front of her.<\/p>\n

\"AThe passenger in question was forcefully cuffed and dragged off the plane by Atlanta police officers. TikTok\/ username66788752<\/p>\n

While officials did not say why they removed the passenger,\u00a0Porter said\u00a0he had appeared to\u00a0grow\u00a0agitated when his bag wouldn\u2019t fit under the seat in front of him.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe wasn\u2019t yelling or anything but I did hear that people were commenting on the size of his bag\u2026 It escalated when the flight attendant told him it wouldn\u2019t fit under his seat and he was going to have to put it above him,\u201d\u00a0she said.<\/p>\n

The man allegedly started texting someone\u00a0\u201cthreats,\u201d\u00a0\u00a0which caused a nearby passenger to alert the flight crew.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\u201cI don\u2019t know exactly what he was saying or who he was texting but it must have been serious enough for all of this to happen,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

After he was\u00a0removed, the remaining passengers sat on the plane on the runway for\u00a0more than\u00a090 minutes, she said.<\/p>\n

Eventually, passengers were told to deboard the plane and police canines checked their bags,\u00a0before waiting another 90 minutes onboard of buses on the runway, according to Porter.<\/p>\n

Passengers were eventually able to board a new aircraft and arrived at their intended destination in Florida shortly before 4 A.M.\u00a0Saturday\u00a0\u2014 turning the short two-hour flight into a nine-hour\u00a0nightmare, Porter said.<\/p>\n

Southwest Airlines said in a statement\u00a0Saturday\u00a0that the aircraft was diverted in order to respond to a \u201cpossible security matter,\u201d\u00a0but that company policy prohibited the company from\u00a0sharing \u201cspecifics of security-related incidents.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man was not charged, said the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which responded along with Atlanta police and determined, \u201cThere was no credible threat.\u201d<\/p>\n

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