An immigrant of Moroccan nationality caused chaos at Valencia Airport in Spain after being involved in a serious incident on a commercial plane destined for Amsterdam. The action forced the flight to be delayed for more than two hours and led to extreme tension between passengers and airport staff.
The event took place on Saturday afternoon, when the aircraft—an Airbus A320 belonging to the Vueling company—was already prepared to begin its takeoff maneuver. It was then that the individual irregularly entered the area of the plane and managed to climb to the top of the fuselage carrying an object an unknown nature at the time, according to Las Provincias.
The situation immediately activated security protocols. Three officers of Spain’s Civil Guard moved to the scene and began a negotiation with the man, who remained in an elevated position and refused to descend.
JUST IN: A 24-year-old Moroccan climbed onto the roof of an Airbus A320 at Valencia's Manises Airport and began screaming and ranting.
His stunt delayed the Amsterdam-bound plane for nearly 3 hours.
He was arrested, charged, and is receiving a psychiatric evaluation. pic.twitter.com/KYEfmSOdTV
— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) February 2, 2026During that time, the flight was completely paralyzed while the possible risk was assessed.
After several minutes of conversation, the agents managed to get him to leave the aircraft using the same ladder through which he had entered. Once on the ground, he was identified and subjected to an exhaustive search to rule out the presence of explosives or other dangerous devices. The search turned up negative.
During the intervention, the officers confirmed that the individual “he had an altered mental state.” According to witnesses, “he uttered insults and offensive comments directed at different groups.”
A number of individuals recorded the incident from their phones, with the footage spreading on social media.
The detainee was later treated at the airport itself by health personnel specialized in mental health, after personnel from the “Psychiatry Unit of the General Hospital of Valencia” traveled to the scene, according to medical sources.
Despite what happened, the authorities confirmed that at no time was there a real danger to passengers nor was air safety compromised. There were also no effects on the rest of the traffic at the airport, according to airport operator Aena sources.
Finally, the travelers were able to resume their itinerary and the flight took off approximately two and a half hours late. The aircraft landed in the Dutch capital at 11:15 p.m., with no further incidents recorded during the journey.
