Hijack Interrupts Mexican Flight

Crew aboard a Volaris Airlines A320 thwarted an apparent hijacking and then continued to their destination of Tijuana on Sunday. The Guardian reported the flight originated in León, Guanajuato, a notorious drug cartel base, and a passenger, identified only as Mario, tried to divert it to the U.S., which is steps away from Tijuana. He reportedly said he feared for his life if he ended up in Tijuana. “The aggressor told [the flight crew] a close relative had been kidnapped and, upon taking off from León, was threatened to be killed if he went to Tijuana,” Volaris said in a statement.

He got his wish to not go to Tijuana. After allegedly assaulting a flight attendant, he tried to get into the flight deck to convince the pilots to go to the U.S. After subduing Mario, the crew headed for Guadalajara where they dropped him off with the authorities. Then they took off again for Tijuana. Mario was travelling with his family. It's not clear if they joined him in Guadalajara or completed the trip to Tijuana.