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New details emerge after United ‘hijacking’ threat — as 25-year-old suspect’s chilling messages are revealed

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Cite

Clelland, G. (2026, October 27). New details emerge after United ‘hijacking’ threat — as 25-year-old suspect’s chilling messages are revealed. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/10/26/us-news/chilling-messages-revealed-in-united-flight-hijack-threat/

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New York Post · collected 2026-10-27 · by Georgia Clelland

Quick Summary

Dante Milne, a 25-year-old man from Las Vegas, was arrested and charged with felony threats of terrorism after communicating his intent to hijack United Airlines Flight 1681 on Saturday night. The flight had to return to Harry Reid International Airport shortly after takeoff following the security alert, causing all passengers to spend an extra night in Las Vegas. Milne posted a $10,000 bond and was released pending trial; FAA data shows over 1,400 unruly passenger incidents this year.
Written by AI on 2026-10-27, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On October 24, 2026, United Airlines Flight 1681, a Boeing 737 carrying 150 passengers and six crew members from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas to Newark Liberty International Airport, was forced to return to Las Vegas after a flight attendant noticed a passenger texting about hijacking the plane. The pilot secured the cockpit, and law enforcement met the aircraft upon landing at approximately 11:05 p.m. local time. The passenger, identified as Dante Milne (25), told investigators he had been drinking and described the message as poorly worded banter with a coworker, claiming no intention to harm anyone. Despite this, Milne was arrested and charged with making threats or conveying false information regarding an act of terrorism. His lawyer plans to plead not guilty.

Written for “United Flight Hijack Threat Investigation” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 5 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 United Flight Hijack Threat Investigation
Crime & Law · 6 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 5% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Fox News
Hedges 10 of 20 claims Outlet record 69/100
The Independent
Hedges 4 of 15 claims Outlet record 59/100
The Independent
Hedges 4 of 21 claims Outlet record 59/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
21
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
5%
1 of 21 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
6
Crime & Law
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-27 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 16396 article(s) · 35 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 35 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Georgia Clelland
21 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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🔮 According to a criminal complaint, 25-year-old Dante Milne communicated via his mobile device that he was “gonna hijack this” plane—using an expletive in the message—and wrote that he would “crash ur row only.”
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Also by Georgia Clelland
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 21 articles by Georgia Clelland →

Topics

737 Boeing Flight 1681 Las Vegas United Airlines

Subjects

Milne PERSON · 5× Las Vegas GPE · 4× Boeing ORG · 2× Dante Milne PERSON · 1× Nevada GPE · 1× Newark GPE · 1× The Federal Aviation Administration ORG · 1× United Airlines ORG · 1× Vegas GPE · 1× the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department ORG · 1×

Narrative

Because the diversion caused the flight crew to exceed their federally mandated operating hours, the remaining 149 passengers were forced to stay in Las Vegas overnight before departing on a rescheduled flight to Newark on Sunday morning.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-27
🔮 According to a criminal complaint, 25-year-old Dante Milne communicated via his mobile device that he was “gonna hijack this” plane—using an expletive in the message—and wrote that he would “crash ur row only.”

Claims (21 extracted, 1 hedged)

According to a criminal complaint, 25-year-old Dante Milne communicated via his mobile device that he was “gonna hijack this” plane—using an expletive in the message—and wrote that he would “crash ur row only.” uncertain
he → accord → row
The complaint does not specify how the message was transmitted or who was intended to receive it. asserted
who → specify → it
Milne was arrested and booked into the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas on felony charges of making threats or conveying false information regarding an act of terrorism. asserted
Milne → arrest → terrorism
Court records show Milne subsequently posted a $10,000 bond and was released pending a scheduled court appearance on Tuesday. asserted
Milne → show → Tuesday
The security alert unfolded Saturday night aboard United Airlines Flight 1681, a Boeing 737 carrying 150 passengers and six crew members from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas to Newark Liberty International Airport. asserted
alert → unfold → Airport
Shortly after takeoff, a flight attendant observed Milne typing references to seizing control of the aircraft. asserted
Milne → observe → aircraft
Rather than approach the passenger directly, the crew member adhered to security protocol and immediately notified the cockpit. asserted
member → approach → cockpit
The flight deck promptly initiated lockdown procedures. asserted
deck → initiate → procedures
Air traffic control audio recordings captured the pilot briefing controllers on the situation while reversing course back toward Las Vegas. asserted
pilot → capture → Vegas
“The flight attendant saw him texting that he was going to hijack the aircraft. asserted
he → see → aircraft
They called me. asserted
They → call → me
We went into lockdown, and we returned to Vegas,” the captain said. asserted
captain → go → Vegas
Asked by air traffic controllers whether the suspect had been restrained by cabin crew, the pilot said Milne was not restrained because he was unaware that crew members had seen the messages. asserted
members → ask → messages
Flight-tracking data shows the aircraft was airborne for less than an hour, landing safely back at Harry Reid International Airport at approximately 11:05 p.m. local time. asserted
aircraft → track → p.m.
Officers with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department met the aircraft on the tarmac and detained Milne without incident. asserted
Officers → meet → incident
All passengers were evacuated, and law enforcement conducted a comprehensive security inspection of the Boeing 737. asserted
enforcement → evacuate → Boeing
No injuries were reported. asserted
injuries → report → ?
Because the diversion caused the flight crew to exceed their federally mandated operating hours, the remaining 149 passengers were forced to stay in Las Vegas overnight before departing on a rescheduled flight to Newark on Sunday morning. asserted
passengers → cause → morning
Under Nevada statute, the felony charge of conveying false information or making threats concerning an act of terrorism carries a potential prison term of one to 20 years. asserted
charge → convey → years
The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed an investigation into the incident is underway. asserted
investigation → confirm → incident
The agency reported it has tracked more than 1,400 unruly passenger incidents across commercial flights in 2026. asserted
it → report → 2026
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