Terrified passengers on board an EasyJet plane had to overpower a British man who twice tried to open a cabin door mid-flight at 35,000ft

The man, believed to be in his 40s, became agitated during the short trip from Krakow, Poland to Edinburgh.

He raised concerns among other passengers as he began pacing up and down the aisles while clutching onto a card of safety instructions, which detailed how to open the exit during an emergency situation.

The man finally put on his rucksack and lunged for the door handle but was quickly tackled by staff and fellow passengers as the aircraft's pilots were forced to land at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport.

Gordon Kennedy, 57, who helped tie the man down using his belts, said people started to worry shortly after take-off.

'It was absolutely horrendous and the terror in the eyes of the passengers was awful,' said the telecoms engineer, speaking in the Daily Mirror.

'He was walking up and down the aisle, carrying a card of safety instructions. About an hour into the flight, he stopped at a door and was looking from the card to the door handle and back to the card.'

Mr Kennedy, of Paisley, told the Daily Mirror the man then grabbed the door handle but was restrained before causing any harm.

A spokesman for easyJet said that passengers were never in any danger.

The man is now being held by police.

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