American Airlines Flight 5242 to New Bern at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina was holding just off a taxiway on May 25, with the fasten-seatbelt sign illuminated, when Tun Lon Sein allegedly got out of his seat and attempted to open the main aircraft door.
A flight attendant stood up and immediately told Sein to return to his seat while two other passengers got up to help, according to a complaint filed in federal court, the ABC reported.
He then managed to open the door and jump down to the tarmac below, it said.
While he did not speak English, a criminal complaint said he understood the flight crew's instructions before he exited the flight.
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Two employees working on the tarmac stopped Sein from running onto a nearby active taxiway. He was then taken to the terminal and transported to a medical facility.
The plane returned to the gate where passengers exited to be re-screened. The plane, operated by PSA Airlines, an American regional airline, departed Charlotte at 11:31 am. It had been scheduled to leave at 9:40 am, according to American Airlines.