Unruly airline passenger who had to be duct-taped to his seat after 'racist meltdown' identified and fired from job
An American Airlines passenger has been fired from his job after he was allegedly 'racist' to staff and violent towards fellow passengers.
Arthur Layne Lundeen, 67, was duct taped to his seat by flight attendants working on the American Airlines flight from Dallas, Texas, to Newark, New Jersey, last Thursday (3 September).
Retired police officer Juan Mejia claims to have been bitten by Lundeen, while fellow passenger Richard Olenick says Lundeen attempted to do the same thing to him.
The pair intervened when Lundeen suddenly 'started to become abusive and using profanity', they previously told CNN.
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The passengers claim Lundeen used 'racial and homophobic slurs' after allegedly hitting two passengers, as flight attendants gave Mejia, Olenick and a third passenger a zip tie to restrain Lundeen.
Lundeen was then duct-taped to his seat.
"Physically, it lessened his ability to move for sure," Olenick said. "But it did not solve the issue. He was still pushing and resisting and trying to get up.
"We don’t know exactly what happened, what triggered it. But whatever it was, it was pretty intense."
After diverting to Maryland, Lundeen was arrested by Maryland Transportation Police and removed from the plane, which then continued its planned journey to Newark.
He has since been charged with second-degree assault and disorderly conduct, according to TMZ.
Lundeen is said to have been released and will appear in court on October 19.
He has since been fired from his job as a real-estate agent at Long Realty.
The Tucson-based company said in a statement: "Long Realty is aware of reports concerning criminal charges filed against a former affiliated real estate agent arising from an incident that allegedly occurred during a commercial flight.
"Upon learning of the incident, Long Realty promptly ended its affiliation with the individual. The individual is no longer associated with or authorized to represent Long Realty in any capacity.
"The conduct described in the reports is wholly inconsistent with the professionalism, integrity, compassion, and respect for others that Long Realty expects from those affiliated with the company."
The statement continued: "We expect those associated with our company to uphold those values, and we have no tolerance for conduct that so clearly falls short of those expectations.
"Our focus remains on serving our clients and community in accordance with our values. Our thoughts are with the passengers, crew members and others affected by this incident."
Meanwhile, American Airlines told press: "On 3 September, American Airlines flight 618 diverted to Baltimore (BWI) due to a disruptive customer.
"Upon arrival, law enforcement met the aircraft and assisted with deplaning the customer before the flight continued to its destination.
"The safety and security of our customers and team members is our top priority and we do not tolerate violence.
"We thank our team members for their professionalism and our customers for their understanding."
Topics: American Airlines, Travel, US News
Callum Jones