Pilot Gets Stuck In Bathroom As Plane Nears Landing At LaGuardia
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A bathroom break caused a scare in the air for a plane from North Carolina heading to New York.
The problem started when the pilot got stuck in the lavatory. It ended with FBI agents meeting the jet when it landed.
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When you gotta go, you gotta go -- even when you're about to land at LaGuardia Airport. But that's the situation a pilot from Chautauqua Airlines, a regional carrier for Delta, found himself in Wednesday night.
So he went, but then the lavatory door jammed and he couldn't get out. He pounded on the door and passenger tried to help. The pilot told the passenger to go to the cockpit and tell the his co-pilot, but the co-pilot didn't believe him.
Co-Pilot: "The captain has disappeared in the back and I have someone with a thick foreign accent trying to access the cockpit right now."
As the passenger tried to explain the situation, the co-pilot remained doubtful.
Co-Pilot: "What I'm being told is that he's stuck in the lav and someone with a thick foreign accent is giving me a password to access the cockpit and I'm not about to let him in."
Air traffic control apparently thought it was best not to take any chances.
Air-Traffic Control: "You guys ought to declare an emergency and just get on the ground."
But the emergency was averted when the pilot finally managed to get out of the lavatory.
Co-Pilot: "Situation resolved."
Air Traffic Control: "All set now and everything okay?"
Co-Pilot: "Yes, sir. We are all good and ready to start the approach."
Nevertheless, the FBI and Port Authority Police met the plane when it landed. The airline said officers talked to the passenger, and quickly realized what had happened.
No word on if the other passengers who had taken off from Asheville, North Carolina were aware of what was going on.
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