Chaos on United Airlines flight as passenger tries to OPEN plane door at 36,000 feet... before assaulting fellow travelers

Published: 21:41, 22 May 2026 | Updated: 21:41, 22 May 2026 A United Airlines flight from New Jersey to Guatemala was forced to make an emergency landing after a passenger allegedly tried to open one of the plane’s doors at 36,000 feet and assaulted another traveler mid-flight. United Flight 1551, a Boeing 737 Max 8 carrying 145 passengers and six crew members, departed from Newark Liberty International Airport at 6.46pm Thursday for Guatemala City before chaos erupted onboard, according to air traffic control audio and airline officials. The terrifying incident unfolded less than two hours into the five-hour international flight as the aircraft cruised at 36,000 feet. FlightAware data shows the plane abruptly diverted south toward Washington Dulles International Airport, where it landed safely at 8.38pm. As the aircraft descended into Dulles, air traffic controllers could be heard questioning the pilot about the alarming incident onboard. 'United 1551, they're asking me what door did the passenger try to open?' a controller said in audio later shared online. The pilot replied: 'Door 2L at 36,000 feet and then [the passenger] assaulted a fellow passenger.' Door 2L refers to the aircraft's rear left cabin exit door. A United flight from New Jersey to Guatemala made an emergency landing after a passenger allegedly tried to open a plane door at 36,000 feet and assaulted another traveler United Flight 1551, carrying 145 passengers and six crew, departed Newark for Guatemala City Thursday evening before chaos erupted onboard, according to officials and air traffic control audio Controllers then asked whether there were any injuries onboard. 'Not to our knowledge,' the pilot responded. A spokesperson for United Airlines confirmed the aircraft was met by law enforcement after landing. 'The flight was met by law enforcement to address an unruly passenger,' the airline said in a statement. United said the flight was ultimately canceled and passengers were provided overnight hotel accommodations before a replacement flight was scheduled Friday morning. The Federal Bureau of Investigation confirmed agents responded to the incident at Dulles Airport but did not immediately release additional details. It remains unclear whether the passenger was arrested or what charges, if any, may be filed. While commercial aircraft doors cannot typically be opened during flights because of cabin pressurization, any attempt to tamper with an exit is treated as a serious security concern by airlines and federal authorities. No injuries were immediately reported and authorities have not publicly identified the passenger involved. The aircraft remained grounded overnight following the emergency diversion as stranded passengers were forced to spend the night near the airport after the Guatemala-bound flight was canceled. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.