Passenger Reportedly Tried To Blow Up Plane

Dec. 25, 2009 | National Public Radio

AP Photo/J.P. Karas

This picture provided by J.P. Karas shows Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on the runway after arriving at Detroit Metropolitan Airport from Amsterdam on Friday, Dec. 25, 2009. A passenger aboard the plane set off firecrackers Friday, causing a commotion and some minor injuries, a Delta official said. Delta and Northwest have merged.

Authorities are investigating reports that a man, claiming to have al-Qaida links, tried to light an incendiary device aboard a Northwest Airlines flight in Detroit.

Authorities are investigating reports that a man, claiming to have al-Qaida links, tried to light an incendiary device aboard a Northwest Airlines flight in Detroit. The incident is being treated as an apparent act of terrorism.

A senior U.S. counterterrorism official told The Associated Press the passenger was planning to blow up the plane but the explosive device failed. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing.

The suspect was being questioned Friday evening. Rep. Peter King of New York, the senior Republican on the House Homeland Security Committee, identified him as Abdul Mudallad, a Nigerian. King said the flight began in Nigeria and went through Amsterdam en route to Detroit.

Law enforcement sources told NPR that they are investigating the man's claim that he had links to al-Qaida.

Authorities initially believed the passenger had set off firecrackers, causing some minor injuries. The suspect is being treated for burns at a hospital.

A spokeswoman with Northwest's parent company, Delta Air Lines, said the suspect was immediately subdued by other passengers.

White House spokesman Bill Burton said President Obama had been notified of the incident and was monitoring the situation.

One passenger from the flight was taken to the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, Mich., hospital spokeswoman Tracy Justice said. She didn't know the person's condition or whether the person was a man or woman. She referred all inquiries to the FBI.

An FBI spokeswoman in Detroit said the incident is being investigated.

The incident occurred as Northwest Airlines Flight 253, an Airbus 330 carrying 278 passengers, was arriving in Detroit from Amsterdam.

From NPR staff and The Associated Press