PHOENIX — "Some of our flight attendants are reporting to us that a passenger jumped out of the plane," the pilot of Southwest flight 42336 called over the radio.
Police said Daniel Ramirez, 30, had opened the rear door of the plane and jumped out onto the tarmac Saturday morning.
Other pilots radioed to the tower they could see a man running from the plane.
"Yeah, looks like we saw somebody walking across the tarmac over there just east of that fire station," a Frontier airlines pilot called.
The Southwest pilot asked the tower if he could proceed to the gate and move the plane out of the way.
"We're actually going to send the city and police to meet you if you can just hold," the tower said.
Ramirez allegedly ran across the Sierra taxiway, which is a bridge running between Terminal 3 and 4 at Sky Harbor, and into Fire Station 19, an airport fire station on the south side of the airport.
Phoenix Fire officials said he locked himself inside the station's dorm room.
RELATED: Passenger who jumped from Southwest Airlines plane at Sky Harbor arrested, facing felony charges
Court paperwork said Ramirez opened all the lockers inside and refused to come out.
Firefighters said first responders managed to talk him into opening the door and held him until the police came to arrest him.
Officials with Southwest Airlines refused to answer any questions about how Ramirez got access to the door or even if the evacuation slide deployed when the door was open.
But former American Airlines pilot and professor at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott Ron Carr said flight attendants are required to sit next to the doors for safety.
“They have to do that because one person has to be available to open that door in the back," he said.
Carr also said opening the door would be relatively easy, but that the door would normally have the evacuation slide armed.
Ramirez was arrested on one count of criminal trespassing. He's since been released without bond.
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