Airport police agencies from across the country came to the Dayton International Airport on Tuesday to complete tactical training with the goal of removing unruly passengers from planes in an efficient and safe way.
Travelers armed with smartphones are ready to film the next viral airplane incident, officers say. Last spring, travelers expressed outrage when a video was posted of a passenger was bloodied and bruised after being dragged off a United Chicago-Louisville flight by police officers.
Passenger David Dao, 69, was removed from his seat due to an overbooked flight. When he did not comply with the order, the altercation became physical — leaving Dao with several injuries. The incident outraged travelers across the world, urging airlines to look at safety and boarding policies.
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The Dayton airport hosted Force Management System Training for various police departments. The system is designed to eliminate officer and subject injuries when officers have to physically engage with a person. The goal? Avoid another passenger injury like the United incident, said Larry Bade, Dayton airport police officer and training instructor.
Bade said larger airports often have to forcibly remove passengers due to intoxication, aggression or mental issues. In Dayton, they hardly ever see scenarios where they have to get physical with a passenger who has boarded a plane.
“It doesn’t happen that frequently,” he said.
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Eric Kohtz, president of Talon Serviceable Training Solutions, showed officers how to physically engage with a non-compliant passenger in a way that won’t cause injury and keeps other passengers safe too. The first step: Ask one more time if there’s anything the officer can do to get the passenger to leave the aircraft on their own.
Kohtz thinks social media is skewing the perception that incidents like this happen all the time. They don’t, he said, but he wants officers to be prepared when the phones come out. It’ll prove the officers are acting in a “professional manner,” he said.
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