On Saturday 24 October 2026, a United Airlines flight heading from Las Vegas to Newark made a U-turn soon after take-off. The security measure was allegedly taken by the pilot after a flight attendant saw a text sent by a passenger, in which he said he was going to hijack the aircraft.
United Airlines flight 1681 departed from Las Vegas Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) at 10:51 pm and was meant to return to the airline’s base at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR). However, soon after take-off, Air Traffic Control (ATC) was made aware of a possible emergency situation aboard the plane.
Allegedly, one of the flight attendants had spotted a text sent by one of the passengers, specifying he was going to “crash ur row only” – or hijack – the plane. It is not clear as of yet how the message was sent, who it was sent to, or how the flight attendant was able to read it.
“The passenger doesn’t know anything is going on. The flight attendant saw him texting that he was going to hijack the aircraft”, the pilot told Air Traffic Control according to Simple Flying.
A flight attendant may have foiled a possible hijacking after noticing a passenger’s text message. On a flight from Las Vegas to Newark, a crew member reportedly spotted a passenger writing that he planned to hijack the plane. #FlightAttendant #Hijacking #LasVegas #Newark #AviationSecurity #TextMessage #HeroCrew #snnfinland
— SNN Finland (@snnfinalnd) October 26, 2026
When the pilot was made aware of the situation by the flight attendant, he made the decision to lock down the cockpit and to return to Las Vegas. The plane made a U-turn over the Arizona ghost town of Oak Grove and started heading back.
The aircraft, reportedly a Boeing 737 MAX 8, was carrying fuel for the journey to Newark and was above its normal maximum landing weight. As the aircraft was not equipped with a fuel-dumping system, the pilots made additional turns to burn fuel before returning to Las Vegas.
Before landing, the pilot requested Runway 26L. In his communications, he specified that as a safety measure, he might require the full length of the runway, which amounts to 3,208 meters.
“United Airlines Flight 1681 returned safely to Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas around 11:05 p.m. local time on Saturday, Oct. 24, after the crew reported a passenger disturbance,” the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.
🚨🇺🇸#BREAKING | NEWS ⚠️ United Airlines flight 1681 has to turn around for an emergency landing in Las Vegas after a foiled hijacking plot US Marshals were at the gate to arrest the suspect. ATC audio and flightpath of the aircraft as it turns red and makes emergency landing. https://t.co/gjQHFUgOXW
— Todd Paron🇺🇸🇬🇷🎧👽 (@tparon) October 25, 2026
“United flight 1681 from Las Vegas to Newark on Saturday, Oct. 24, safely returned to Las Vegas to address a potential security concern. The flight was delayed overnight due to crew timeout, and departed for Newark this morning,” a United Airlines spokesperson told Simple Flying.
According to the Associated Press, police were waiting for the 25 year-old passenger who made the hijacking threat upon arrival. The man was arrested on charges of making a threat or providing false information regarding an act of terrorism. If he is found guilty, he could face a sentence of 1 to 20 years in prison. The Federal Aviation Administration will also be investigating the incident.
The other passengers aboard the flight were able to leave for Newark on Sunday morning.
