Delta Passenger Steals and Crashes Airport Tug, Attempts to Take Lavatory Truck at John Wayne Airport
A 26-year-old man, scheduled for a Delta flight from Orange County to Seattle, stole an airline tug at John Wayne Airport. The incident occurred on Tuesday around 5:30 p.m. when the passenger allegedly entered the airfield through Gate 12. He then drove the stolen Alaska Airlines tug for some distance before crashing it into another vehicle at Gate 7. Following this, he attempted to steal an American Airlines lavatory truck but was apprehended by Airport Police Services. Footage of the tug theft has circulated on social media, showing the individual reversing the tug out of its parking spot before moving behind a parked aircraft. The area around Gate 7 was closed for approximately 10 minutes due to the incident. The suspect was taken into custody and transported to a local hospital for evaluation. Air traffic controllers briefly mentioned a 'ground stop' during radio communications, though authorities did not formally impose one. Delta acknowledged the event, deferring further comments to local airport off...
