A passenger aboard a domestic Volaris flight on Sunday morning attempted to hijack and forcibly divert the aircraft to the United States, prompting an emergency landing in Guadalajara and the man’s subsequent arrest.
The individual — a 31-year-old Mexican national identified as Mario “N” — was traveling from Leon, Guanajuato, to Tijuana, Baja California, with his wife and two children when the incident unfolded.
According to authorities, Mario assaulted a flight attendant and attempted to breach the cockpit, citing a recent kidnapping of a close relative and a death threat as motivations for his actions.
Crew members and at least one passenger subdued the suspect while the pilot issued an alert code and diverted the Airbus A320 to Guadalajara International Airport.
Authorities, including the National Guard (GN), arrested Mario upon landing and transferred him to the Federal Public Ministry (MPF) for further investigation. His legal status will be determined by the Attorney General’s Office (FGR).
“The crew subdued the aggressor in accordance with established security protocols,” Volaris said in a statement. At the Guadalajara airport, “GN personnel were already waiting for him.”
The passengers and crew later continued on to Tijuana.
“All passengers, crew and the aircraft are safe,” read a Volaris statement that was posted to the social media site X.
Volaris also announced it had formally filed a complaint to ensure the suspect faces legal consequences.
According to the authorities, the suspect said that upon taking off from León, he received a message that threatened either his own life or his kidnapped relative’s life — it’s not quite clear — if Mario traveled to Tijuana.
According to witness reports, Mario grabbed a flight attendant, threatened her with a pen against her neck, and grabbed the handle to the plane’s door, saying he would jump to his death and take the flight attendant with him.
Another passenger reportedly played a pivotal role in defusing the situation by persuading Mario to release the flight attendant and surrender peacefully. This person said no security personnel were present, and that it was he, with the help of other passengers, who managed to contain the attack.
One witness said the man managed to get the plane door cracked open as passengers could be heard screaming, crying and pleading with him not to open it. Videos of the incident appear to confirm that account.
Another witness said the suspect initially told passengers that he wanted to attract attention because his wife had been kidnapped and was seeking political asylum in the United States.
Authorities noted that the state of Guanajuato, the flight’s departure point, is a region heavily affected by cartel violence, including extortion and kidnapping. It remains unclear if the threats Mario said he had received were connected to organized crime.
With reports from Milenio, AP, KABC-TV, Infobae, The Guardian and Fox 5 San Diego
Terrible and scary incident! Not sure if it would actually have been possible for him to open that door if they were at altitude. If he had all those people standing up would have gone with him.