After a group of passengers jumped from a plane onto the runway at Palma de Mallorca airport on Friday night, causing the airport to close for several hours, Spanish police arrested 12 people and were looking for another 12.
Following a report of an ill passenger, an Air Arabia Maroc flight from Casablanca to Istanbul made an emergency landing at Palma de Mallorca airport, according to Guardia Civil.
A group of 21 passengers fled the plane when the doors were opened according to the regional government. Aina Calvo, a spokeswoman for the regional government, told reporters that the events were ‘unprecedented’.
The ill passenger, who was taken to the hospital with a companion and given the all-clear, was among the 12 arrested. The companion then attempted to flee the hospital but was captured as well. Another passenger had been detained for acting aggressively on the plane.
While emergency landings at Palma’s airport were not uncommon, ‘what was unusual was that a group of passengers decided not to comply with international rules,’ according to Calvo.
She added that the police were trying to figure out why the passengers fled and whether it was part of a larger plan or an isolated incident. None of those detained attempted to seek asylum in Spain.
‘These are people who have arrived illegally, not by sea,’ Calvo explained. ‘At the very least, they will be returned to their country of origin.’
Several Spanish news outlets, including El Pais and RTVE, speculated that the incident was an attempt to illegally enter Spain, but this has yet to be confirmed.
Aena, the airport operator, was forced to close the airport for more than three hours, causing flights to be diverted to other airports such as Barcelona, Ibiza and Menorca.
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