The plane was diverted for an emergency landing in Buenos Aires.
Armed police boarded an American Airlines flight after a strange ‘thumping noise’ was heard at 35,000 feet, forcing an unexpected return to Buenos Aires. Aviation Source News. Flight 954 had departed Buenos Aires’ Ezeiza International Airport at 9:15 pm on Thursday and headed to New York with an estimated arrival of 6:50 am on Friday. But while flying over Cordoba, the plane suddenly returned to Buenos Aires for an emergency landing.
According to news items, Passengers and crew heard sounds similar to someone knocking from the cargo hold, raising fears that someone was trapped there. The pilot initially told passengers that the plane was turning back due to a technical problem, but later suggested it was possible that a person was in the cargo hold, which is typically closed and not intended for live cargo.
Watch the video here:
Equipo command entrando a la bodega del avión! pic.twitter.com/HjWMyhsS17
— Señora de Snoopy (@nanudandrea) November 1, 2024
Images on social media showed intense scenes as authorities prepared to inspect the cargo hold. Argentina’s main newspaper Clarin reported that specialized teams, including the Special Tactical Assault Group (GEAT), Explosives and Special Weapons Control Group (GEDEX), and specially trained dogs, had been deployed to investigate. The operation also involved National Civil Aviation Administration personnel, PFA firefighters and medical support teams.
The subway reported that airport security said in a statement: “Noises were heard in the cargo hold, enough to raise suspicion that something was unusual. The captain referred to a safety issue resulting from hearing noises.”
Heavily armed officers and sniffer dogs were on standby as the flight returned. When the police entered the hold, they found no one there.
They reported: “The hold was opened and the unloading of the baggage containers commenced, with nothing outside normal parameters seen at the time.”