Romulus, Michigan: An attempted terrorist attack on a Christmas Day flight began with a pop and a puff of smoke — sending passengers scrambling to subdue a Nigerian man who claimed to be acting on orders from Al Qaida to blow up the airliner, officials and travellers said.
The commotion began as Northwest Airlines Flight 253, carrying 278 passengers and 11 crew members from Amsterdam, prepared to land in Detroit just before noon on Friday. Travellers said they smelled smoke, saw a glow, and heard what sounded like firecrackers.
"It sounded like a firecracker in a pillowcase," said Peter Smith, a passenger from the Netherlands. "First there was a pop, and then [there] was smoke."
Smith said one passenger, sitting opposite the man, climbed over passengers, went across the aisle and tried to restrain the man, who officials say was trying to ignite an explosive device. The heroic passenger appeared to have been burned.
Suspect badly burned
Afterward, the suspect was taken to a front-row seat with his pants cut off and his legs burned. Multiple law enforcement officials also said the man appeared badly burned on his legs, indicating the explosive was strapped there. The components were apparently mixed in-flight and included a powdery substance, multiple law enforcement and counter-terrorism officials said.
The incident was reminiscent of Richard Reid, who tried to destroy a trans-Atlantic flight in 2001 with explosives hidden in his shoes, but was subdued by other passengers.
Multiple law enforcement officials identified the suspect in Friday's attempted attack as Abdul Farouk Abdul Mutallab. He was described as Nigerian.
One law enforcement official said the man claimed to have been instructed by Al Qaida to detonate the plane over US soil, but other law enforcement officials cautioned that such claims could not be verified immediately.
Intelligence and anti-terrorism officials in Yemen said they were investigating claims by the suspect that he picked up the explosive device and instructions on how to use it in that country.
The suspect boarded in Nigeria and went through Amsterdam en route to Detroit, Peter King, the ranking Republican member of the House Homeland Security Committee, told CNN.
Nigeria's information minister, Dora Akunyili, condemned the attempted bombing. She said the government has opened its own investigation into the suspect and will work with US authorities.
College records
London's Metropolitan Police also was working with US officials, a spokeswoman said, and searches were being conducted in that city.
University College London (UCL) said that while the name Abdul Farouk Abdul Mutallab did not appear in its records, a student called Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab was enrolled at the institution until June 2008.
But the college said it wasn't certain the student was the same person who was on the plane.
Passenger Syed Jafri, a US citizen who had flown from the UAE, said the incident occurred during the plane's descent. Jafri said he was seated three rows behind the passenger and said he saw a glow, and noticed a smoke smell. Then, he said, "a young man behind me jumped on him".
"Next thing you know, there was a lot of panic."
