Man Charged with Terror Threat Over Drunken Text Message on United Flight

Dante Milne, 25, faces federal charges after a single text message sent from his seat forced a United Airlines jet to turn back to Las Vegas. The New Jersey man is accused of making a threat in an act of terrorism, yet his attorney insists the incident was nothing more than drunken banter. Milne was arrested on Saturday after sending the message while aboard Flight 1681, which was en route to Newark.

The trouble started before takeoff. Milne admitted to police that he consumed beer and shots at a bar inside Harry Reid International Airport. He then boarded the plane, where he exchanged texts with a colleague he had met during a three-day apprenticeship training program for his job as an underwater welder. One of those messages allegedly read: "I'm gonna hijack this b***h and crash ur row only."

A flight attendant spotted the message on the recipient's phone. The words "I'm gonna hijack" immediately raised alarms. The attendant followed protocol, waiting until the aircraft climbed past 10,000 feet before alerting the captain. This delay was consistent with sterile flight deck procedures. The pilot then contacted air traffic control to report the potential security threat.

The pilot’s recording reveals a calculated decision to keep the passenger in the dark. "Passenger does not know anything is going on," he told the controller. "No restraint. Passenger is compliant because he is unaware." The aircraft returned to Las Vegas, where federal authorities met the plane on the tarmac and took Milne into custody.

Milne claimed he was asleep when the plane turned around. Upon waking, he learned of the diversion and was confronted by officers. Initially, he said he could not recall the content of his texts. When shown the specific message, he denied any intent to hijack the aircraft, crash it, or harm anyone. The arrest report notes that he characterized the wording as poorly stated and suggested the conversation involved banter between coworkers. He acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and expressed remorse.

The human cost of this single text extended far beyond Milne. The other 149 passengers were stranded in Las Vegas overnight. The flight crew had exceeded their mandated operating hours, forcing a delay until Sunday morning for departure. United Airlines confirmed that Flight 1681 safely returned to address a potential security concern.

Milne was booked into the Clark County Jail but has since bailed out. His bail conditions require him to stay out of trouble. His attorney, James Gallo, told a judge on Tuesday that Milne intends to plead not guilty. The case highlights how easily a moment of poor judgment can disrupt aviation safety and leave hundreds of travelers stranded. It also underscores the limited access most citizens have to the internal decision-making processes of flight crews during a crisis. Only the authorities and the pilot knew the true nature of the threat until the plane landed. For the passengers, it was simply a long, confusing night in an unfamiliar city.

Crew timeout forced an overnight delay before the plane finally took off for Newark on Sunday morning, according to a statement the airline gave to The Daily Mail earlier. Milne’s next court appearance is scheduled for January 5.