SouthernWorldwide.com – A United Airlines flight destined for Minneapolis, Minnesota, was compelled to make an emergency landing in Madison, Wisconsin, on Friday. This diversion occurred after a passenger allegedly made repeated attempts to breach the cockpit, as indicated by air traffic control audio recordings.
The flight, which had departed from Chicago, touched down at Madison’s Dane County Regional Airport approximately 90 minutes after its initial takeoff. This information is corroborated by flight tracking data.
While United Airlines has not disclosed the precise details of the security incident, air traffic control audio from Dane County Regional Airport, which was reviewed by WISN, revealed that the passenger in question made “multiple attempts to breach the cockpit.”
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A crew member can be heard on the air traffic control audio stating, “I do not believe they ever cuffed him, but they were able to finally get control of him after multiple attempts to try to breach the cockpit.” The crew member further added, “I believe at this point he is seated in a seat and flanked with law enforcement officers on either side.”
Adding to the situation, a member of the sheriff’s office could be heard remarking, “We’re getting word that there is five off-duty law enforcement on the plane that have the individual detained.”
Authorities successfully removed the disruptive passenger from the flight at approximately 10:30 p.m. CDT, according to communications from the sheriff’s office. The FBI was subsequently notified of the incident.
In a statement shared with FOX 6 Milwaukee, the FBI confirmed, “On May 29, 2026, the FBI was notified that a commercial flight traveling from Chicago to Minneapolis was being diverted to Dane County Regional Airport. FBI Milwaukee’s Madison Resident Agency and local law enforcement partners responded immediately. A subject was detained by the Dane County Sheriff’s Office and afterwards passengers resumed their flight.”
