American Airlines flight diverted after passenger tried to open emergency exit door

A passenger tried to open the exit door on an airplane when there wasn't an emergency, and it didn't go over too well.

An American Airlines flight from Chicago to Dallas/Fort Worth was diverted Tuesday to St. Louis after an unruly passenger attempted to open the emergency exit door mid-flight. He was unsuccessful in doing so.

Flight 2300 left Chicago O'Hare International airport around 6:30 p.m. and made an emergency landing at St. Louis Lambert International less than an hour after takeoff. 

The passenger was removed from the plane and detained by airport police who contacted federal authorities to investigate, Jeff Lea, a St. Louis Lambert spokesperson told Paste BN.

According to ABC and CBS, fellow passengers helped subdue the man to prevent him from opening the exit door. 

Passenger Jonathan Cowan says he was seated in the exit row when he noticed the man trying to open the door. 

"I hammered his hands down," Cowan told CBS. "You ever see a crocodile try and take somebody in the wild... they just take you, they latch on and then they roll and keep on doing that and that's all I was doing just to get him to the ground."

The flight took off from St. Louis about three hours after it landed and continued to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, landing just before 1 a.m.

American Airlines said there were no injuries to passengers or crew members.

"We thank our crewmembers for their quick action to ensure the safety of everyone onboard and providing excellent care to our customers during a difficult situation," Curtis Blessing, a spokesperson for the airline told Paste BN in a statement. 

Contributing: Morgan Hines

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