A United jet bound for Newark turned back to Las Vegas after a flight attendant saw a passenger texting that he would hijack the plane, and police arrested the 25-year-old man when it landed.
Story Highlights
- United Flight 1681 left Las Vegas for Newark on Saturday, October 24, and landed back in Las Vegas around 11:05 p.m.
- The pilot said a flight attendant saw a passenger texting that he was going to hijack the aircraft, so the crew locked down the cockpit
- Police arrested a 25-year-old man on suspicion of making threats or giving false information about acts of terrorism
- About 150 passengers and six crew were stuck overnight, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it will investigate
- The pilot told controllers the passenger had no idea anything was wrong: “No restraint, passenger is compliant because he’s unaware.”
United Flight Turns Back Over a Hijack Text
United Airlines Flight 1681 took off from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas on Saturday night, headed for Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. Shortly after takeoff, the crew turned back because a flight attendant saw a passenger texting about hijacking the plane. In air traffic control audio quoted in news reports, the pilot said, “The flight attendant saw him texting that he was going to hijack the aircraft and called me and we went lockdown.” A lockdown means the crew keeps the cockpit door shut and secured so no one can get in.
The pilot also told controllers the passenger did not know anything was going on. “No restraint, passenger is compliant because he’s unaware,” he said in the audio. United said the plane “safely returned to Las Vegas to address a potential security concern.” No one was hurt. The FAA said the crew reported a passenger disturbance and that “the FAA will investigate.”
An Arrest After Landing
Police met the plane when it landed. On Monday, October 26, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department confirmed it had arrested a 25-year-old man on suspicion of making threats or conveying false information about acts of terrorism. Local reports identified him as Dante Milne. He was booked into the Clark County Detention Center, posted bond on $10,000 bail and was due in court on Tuesday, October 27, according to local reports. He is accused, not convicted, and police have not released the text itself.
Before it could land, the plane was still “grossly overweight” with fuel, the pilot told controllers. Flight tracking data showed it made two loops to burn fuel first, because landing too heavy can strain the landing gear.
A Long Night for 150 Passengers
The 150 passengers and six crew members on the Boeing 737 did not leave again until the next morning. United said the flight “was delayed overnight due to crew timeout.” A crew timeout means the pilots and flight attendants had reached the limit on how many hours federal rules let them work in a row. Passengers reached Newark nearly nine hours after their planned arrival time, according to reports.
Crews are trained to treat any threat to a plane as real until it is ruled out. Since the September 11 attacks, cockpit doors are reinforced and locked, and turning back to land quickly is standard. Airlines filed 1,621 unruly-passenger reports with the FAA in 2025 and more than 1,400 by October 19, 2026, according to FAA data. For the travelers on Flight 1681, a lost night was the price of a crew that chose not to take chances.
Sources:
foxnews.com, people.com, newsnationnow.com, usatoday.com, fox5vegas.com, faa.gov
