On Wednesday, August 17, Hawaiian Airlines flight 459 traveling from Honolulu to Seoul, Korea, had to return to Honolulu. The flight had departed Honolulu at 2:45pm and returned at 8:35pm. When it returned it was greeted by dozens of law enforcement officers from the FBI, TSA, and State of Hawaii Sheriffs. Two passengers were detained during the ordeal and the rest of the 285 passengers were on their way again about 4 hours later. The reason for all the commotion? The two passengers in question were behaving suspiciously. You’d think people would learn, but you really need to watch what you do and say on flights.
Ultimately, the two people in question were released by the FBI. In a press statement, the FBI has said that the passengers did not represent an intentional threat to the crew or passengers of the flight. The names of those detained were not released. Despite the situation working out in the end, it did cause a major headache for the other passengers involved. I’m pretty sure the two suspects aren’t getting reimbursed for their missed flight either. The whole situation must have been pretty embarrassing for the two suspects, too.
Though the events of 9/11 are nearly 15 years old now, it’s important to remember that the effects of those attacks are still being felt. We can no longer greet loved ones at the get, there’s a restriction on what we can carry-on, and now must go through the nude-o-scope prior to our flight. Most important, though, is you need to watch what you do and say on flights, or even before your flight. What not to say is pretty self-explanatory, but what not to do can be less clear. That being said, if you’re gonna do something that you might question, don’t do it. Just use common sense. And even if the flight crew is being super unreasonable, such as not letting you take pictures, just listen. They have the ultimate authority, and if you feel like you need to address the situation, do it later. Take note of the crew member(s) names and report them to the airline’s corporate office. It really isn’t worth missing your flight, or worst, to fight for your perspective.