F-15s scrambled to escort Alaska Airlines plane to Seattle; FBI interviewing passenger
SEATTLE - Two military jets escorted an Alaska Airlines flight into Seattle and authorities took a passenger off the plane, after a caller told the FBI that a possible hijacker was aboard.
Officials say FBI agents were waiting Thursday night to interview the passenger mentioned as a possible threat after the Oregon Air National Guard F-15 jets delivered the aircraft.
FBI spokesman Tom Simon in Honolulu says a caller told his office on Thursday afternoon that a man aboard Alaska Flight 819 from Kona to Seattle was a possible hijacker.
Alaska Airlines spokesman Paul McElroy says law enforcement boarded the jet through rear stairs when it landed about 7 p.m. in Seattle and took the unidentified man off the plane. McElroy says the flight was uneventful.
Seattle FBI spokeswoman Ayn Dietrich said the man was co-operative and was being interviewed. She said there doesn't appear to be any imminent public safety threat.
Simon declined to release any details about the caller who said the man was a threat.
