American held in Cebu Airport


for trying to break plane window

By Chito O. Aragon
Philippine Daily Inquirer

March 20, 2010

CEBU CITY —Airport authorities in Cebu detained an 80-year-old American who created a commotion while on board a Philippine Airlines flight bound for [Mactan from Manila] early Friday.

Rex Hampton struck and slightly damaged a window of the airplane that frightened his fellow passengers. When they arrived at the Mactan International Airport before 6 a.m., Hampton was immediately arrested by the airport police, according to Supt. Joselito Salido, chief of the Police Center for Aviation Security at the airport.

Hampton, a native of Portland, Oregon, was behaving normally when he boarded the plane but was reported to have taken “valium,” an anti-depressant medication before he boarded the Cebu-bound flight, said PAL spokesman Simon Canton Jr.

Salido said the management of PAL called them up to ask for assistance about an unruly passenger on a flight from Manila to Cebu at about 5 a.m

Hampton was with his wife, Jovelyn Campilanan, 42, of barangay Malubog, Toledo City, on the Air[b]us 330. The couple came from the United States via Tokyo, Japan, and was bound for Cebu via Manila since there is no direct Tokyo-Cebu flight.

Canton told reporters that Hampton, who sat by the window struck the window using a metal cane. The cane was immediately taken by a flight attendant, with the help of his wife and by some passengers but soon after, Hampton took his bag containing medicines and some documents and threw it against the window, causing some damage to the window.

Canton said the aircraft’s window has three layers of glass and only the first layer was damaged by Hampton.

Canton said the incident happened 30 minutes after the flight left Manila.

Hampton was turned over to the Lapulapu City Police Office Friday afternoon. The airport police filed charges of damage to property and malicious mischief against Hampton at the Lapulapu City prosecutor’s office at past 3 p.m., Salido said.

Canton meanwhile said that the aircraft went back to its normal flights and left Cebu for Manila on schedule at 6:30 a.m. Friday.

3 comments:

  1. "...Philippine Airlines flight bound for Manila from Mactan early Friday..."

    the first statement is quite misleading...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you for finding that out. We corrected the errors accordingly. Cheers mate!

    ReplyDelete
  3. who was the filipino with the american accent, wearing a Philippines jacket? He seemed to be one of the ones we noticed taking more control of the situation, giving orders and escorting Mr. Hampton off the plane?

    ReplyDelete