(WXYZ) — A SkyWest (Delta connection) flight from Omaha, Nebraska, to Detroit had to make an emergency landing in Iowa after a passenger allegedly assaulted a flight attendant and attempted to open the emergency exit mid-flight.
Watch Brett Kast's video report:
The 23-year-old suspect, Mario Nikprelaj, is in custody in Iowa facing serious charges. Police in Shelby Township, Michigan, say they're already familiar with him from previous incidents.
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Nikprelaj appeared in an Iowa courtroom via video conference to face multiple charges after his disruptive behavior on Thursday's flight forced an emergency landing in Cedar Rapids, IA.
"Definitely not anything I'd experienced before on a flight," said Jonathan Spencer Van Der Waarden, a passenger on the diverted flight.
Van Der Waarden told me issues began almost immediately when flight attendants had to instruct Nikprelaj to remain seated during takeoff. About 20 minutes into the flight, the situation escalated dramatically.
"You know when someone hits the call button and the dings go off? You just hear like 6-7 ding sounds going off in a row, and a gentleman in the back started yelling to the flight attendant, 'he's trying to open the door!'" Van Der Waarden said.
According to Van Der Waarden, after Nikprelaj was initially contained, he removed his shirt and shoes, then later attempted to approach the cockpit. Several passengers intervened to block his path.
"A couple of us passengers intervened, blocked the aisle way, he got aggressive with us, pushing, shouting," Van Der Waarden said. “Don't know what he was going to do, but certainly wasn't going to let him get any closer than he was.”
The pilot soon announced an emergency landing, which passengers like Van Der Waarden say they felt.
"If you've flown enough, you know when you're descending, what that feels like. This felt different, like the G-force is pulling on your body. You're going down quick," Van Der Waarden said.
Police boarded the aircraft in Cedar Rapids and escorted Nikprelaj off the plane.
This wasn't Nikprelaj's first encounter with law enforcement. In 2020, at age 18, he fled from a domestic assault incident and stole a snowplow truck while shirtless. Shelby Township police report they've had multiple prior interactions with Nikprelaj over the years.
Despite the three-hour delay caused by the incident, Van Der Waarden praised the flight crew's response.
"Hats off to everyone there who did what they had to do to keep the plane safe," Van Der Waarden said.
Nikprelaj was also charged with unlawfully possessing more than 40 pills of Xanax. He was given a $10,000 cash surety bond and remains in an Iowa jail.
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