This is the chilling moment when passengers on a flight felt their lives were in danger after a fellow traveler tried to open the cabin doors mid-flight at 30,000 feet.
Oore Fabunmi, 25, was traveling from the Dominican Republic to London Gatwick on a TUI flight on Sunday, June 29, when she reported that a man seated in front of her abruptly stood up and rushed toward the front of the aircraft.
Ms. Oore then recounted hearing screams from frightened passengers at the front of the plane as the man frantically attempted to open the cabin doors.
The confused passenger watched on as fellow travellers onboard tried to halt the man from opening the doors, immediately alerting staff to the incident.
Thankfully, quick-thinking TUI passengers are then said to have intervened – stopping the disruptive passenger in his tracks.
Video footage has shown the scene of chaos onboard the flight, as disorientated passengers anxiously stood in the aisles.
One member of cabin crew onboard the flight is heard attempting to reassure passengers, stating: ‘There is nothing to concern your health about, please return to your seats’.
They added: ‘We do hope you had a fantastic holiday.’
This is the terrifying moment passengers onboard a flight were left fearing for their lives after a fellow traveller attempted to open the cabin doors while at 30,000 feet
Video footage has shown the scene of chaos onboard the flight, as disorientated passengers anxiously stood in the aisles. One member of cabin crew onboard the flight is heard attempting to reassure passengers, stating: ‘Please return to your seats’
Oore Fabunmi, 25, (pictured) was flying from the Dominican Republic to London Gatwick on a TUI flight on Sunday, June 29 when she said that the man seated in front of her suddenly stood up and ran towards the front of the aircraft
The man remained sat with staff for the rest of the eight-hour flight before being escorted off the plane by police officers upon his arrival into London.
A later announcement onboard the flight insisted that ‘there was nothing to worry about’ and everything was under control’ and apologised for the ‘disturbance’.
It continued: ‘We do ask those who are not involved to please return to your seats and let the cabin crew do their job and deal with the situation.’
Recalling the shocking ordeal, Ms Oore, a hearings officer from south London, described the moment the man frantically attempted to open the cabin doors as ‘pretty scary’.
She said: ‘I remember just seeing him leave the row in front of me and run forward.
‘Next thing I heard was just screams coming from the front.
‘My first thought was that we were being hijacked and we might die – like in the movies.’
Ms Oorre, who been returning from a holiday in the Dominican Republic, recalled interacting with the man at the beginning of the flight as she had helped him find the correct seat.
She said: ‘I had chatted to him earlier in the journey.
‘I got onto the plane with some friends I’d made on the holiday and he was actually sitting in one of their seats.
‘They asked him to move and he seemed confused about his ticket so I helped him find his seat.
Recalling the shocking ordeal, Ms Oore, a hearings officer from south London, described the moment the man frantically attempted to open the cabin doors as ‘pretty scary’. She said: ‘I remember just seeing him leave the row in front of me and run forward’
The man remained sat for the rest of the journey, accompanied by staff, while passengers were asked to remain seated after landing as police escorted him off the flight
‘He seemed all right after that until he started getting agitated halfway through the flight.’
But four hours into the flight, Ms Oore began to notice that the passenger had become restless and was acting in a ‘strange’ manner.
She added that at one point he ‘stood up on his seat’ before then making a quick dash for the plane doors.
Remarking that she believed the man was clearly in need of assistance, Ms Oore said that she had ‘no idea’ what prompted his erratic and bizarre behaviour onboard the flight.
The man remained sat for the rest of the journey, accompanied by staff, while passengers were asked to remain seated after landing as police escorted him off the flight.
Ms Oore, who described the remainder of the lengthy journey as ‘tense’, added: ‘The rest of the flight was definitely calmer after that but still tense.
‘The flight attendants were really good at keeping us informed and announcements were made explaining what had happened.
‘It was such a nerve-wracking experience – it definitely made me think twice before flying again.’
A spokesperson for Sussex Police said: ‘Police were called to a disruptive passenger on an inbound flight from Dominican Republic.
‘A 68-year-old man was arrested for endangering an aircraft when the flight arrived at Gatwick on 30 June, 2025.
‘After his detention it was clear the man was suffering with mental health issues. Enquiries are ongoing at this time.’
MailOnline approached Gatwick Airport for comment.
The TUI Group declined to comment.
