'We all took naps': Astonishing claims of dozy baggage handler who fell asleep in cargo hold of plane and woke up screaming for his life mid-flight

  • Willa Junior took a nap in the cargo hold of a plane at Seattle-Tacoma Airport on April 13, and woke up after the flight to Los Angeles took off
  • The baggage handler, who appears to be in his 20s according to Facebook, tried calling his company and 911 but his phone eventually failed
  • He says he was afraid he might die, so he texted his mother a message, telling her 'I love you' 
  • In a last ditch effort, Junior started banging on the ceiling of the cargo hold and his yells were so loud that passengers and crew heard 
  • The flight was turned around after just 14 minutes in the air and returned to Seattle where Junior was rescued 
  • Junior is still employed at his company, but is no longer allowed to work on Alaska Airlines flights - one the largest airlines that fly out of Seattle 

By Ashley Collman For Dailymail.com

Published: | Updated:

The baggage handler who caused an emergency landing when he woke up inside the cargo hold of an airborne flight has come forward for the first time to detail the frightening experience, but still won't explain how he fell asleep to begin with. 

Willa Junior sat down with ABC News for an interview, and says he was exhausted and dozed off while loading a plane at Seattle-Tacoma Airport on April 13 and woke up when a piece of luggage landed on his head.

The airport worker, who appears to be in his early 20s according to Facebook, wouldn't explain how he had the time to take a nap on the plane but says it used to be common practice: 'I mean when I first started the job, we took naps.'

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Taking responsibility: Willa Junior is the Seattle-Tacoma baggage handler who fell asleep in the cargo hold of a plane earlier this month, and became trapped inside when the plane took off 

Taking responsibility: Willa Junior is the Seattle-Tacoma baggage handler who fell asleep in the cargo hold of a plane earlier this month, and became trapped inside when the plane took off 

Making headlines: Junior, who appears to be in his early 20s according to Facebook, sat down for an interview with ABC News to speak about the harrowing and embarrassing experience

Making headlines: Junior, who appears to be in his early 20s according to Facebook, sat down for an interview with ABC News to speak about the harrowing and embarrassing experience

Can you hear me now? This is the moment an Alaska Airlines baggage handler was pulled from the cargo hold after falling asleep. Earlier, the terrified man called 911 begging the dispatcher for help 

Nap time: Junior says he was exhausted when he dosed off while loading an Alaska Airlines flight on April 13. Above, a picture of Junior being rescued from the cargo hold after the plane was forced to turn around 

Rude awakening: Junior woke up when a piece of luggage landed on him and then he called 911 - but his call cut out after just 44 seconds  

Rude awakening: Junior woke up when a piece of luggage landed on him and then he called 911 - but his call cut out after just 44 seconds  

Since it was pitch black inside the cargo hold, Junior was at first confused and disoriented but then quickly realized that the plane was moving.

'In my mind, I said, "This is not happening. This is just a joke."' Junior 

His first move was to call his company, Menzies Aviation, which provides baggage services for airlines. But the person who answered the call at the office thought it was a prank call and just hung up. 

Desperately, Junior next called 911 and struggled to communicate to the dispatcher his unusual and unlikely situation. 

'Hello, I'm trapped in this plane,' Junior tells the operator in audio released of the 911 call. 

'You're where?' the dispatcher asks. 

'I'm inside a plane.I feel like it's moving in the air. Flight 448. Can you please sent someone to stop it?' Junior says. 

Unfortunately the phone call cut out after 44 seconds and then Junior was on his own. 

That's when he started to lose hope, sending a text message to his mother saying he loved her, afraid he was going to die. 

Last words: Junior says he was scared he was going to die, so he sent a text message to his mother, saying he loved her. The area Junior was trapped in was pressurized and temperature controlled, so his life was never threatened 

Last words: Junior says he was scared he was going to die, so he sent a text message to his mother, saying he loved her. The area Junior was trapped in was pressurized and temperature controlled, so his life was never threatened 

Help me! After his call to 911 cut out, Junior started banging on the ceiling of the cargo hold and passengers and crew heard, prompting the flight to turn around  

Help me! After his call to 911 cut out, Junior started banging on the ceiling of the cargo hold and passengers and crew heard, prompting the flight to turn around  

Turn around: The pilot headed back to Seattle after just 14 minutes in the air. Junior says he is sorry for the passengers whose flight to Los Angeles he delayed

Turn around: The pilot headed back to Seattle after just 14 minutes in the air. Junior says he is sorry for the passengers whose flight to Los Angeles he delayed

Luckily that was never the case since the cargo hold where Junior fell asleep is temperature controlled and pressurized, so he was never in danger of freezing or running out of oxygen. 

What saved Junior from being trapped on the flight for it's two and a half hour journey to Los Angeles was his decision to start banging on the roof of the cargo floor. 

'I was yelling, "Help me, somebody’s down here,"' he said. 

Junior's cries for help were so loud that passengers and crew members heard and the plane was turned around after just 14 minutes in the air. 

Junior is currently still employed at Menzies, but he has been permanently banned from working on Alaska Airlines flights - one of the biggest airlines that fly our of Sea-Tac Airport. 

He says he is incredibly sorry for all of the trouble his nap caused, especially to the passengers whose plane he delayed.  

Employed: Junior is currently still employed at Menzies, but he has been permanently banned from working on Alaska Airlines flights - one of the biggest airlines that fly our of Sea-Tac Airport

Employed: Junior is currently still employed at Menzies, but he has been permanently banned from working on Alaska Airlines flights - one of the biggest airlines that fly our of Sea-Tac Airport

 

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