19-Year-Old Was Angry With Route Assignment

An in-flight fire onboard a Compass Airlines regional flight from Minneapolis to Regina, Saskatchewan earlier this month was apparently the result of a young flight attendant's temper tantrum.

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports Eder Rojas, 19, admitted he deliberately started a fire in the rear lavatory of the Embraer 175 during the May 7 flight, because he was upset the airline made him work that route.

The flames forced Flight 2040 to divert to Fargo, ND, where it made an uneventful emergency landing. None of the 72 passengers and four crewmembers onboard were injured, though they were questioned by FBI agents and police upon arrival.

It was during those interrogations the picture started to come together. Rojas was initially credited with helping to put out the fire, along with another flight attendant and a passenger... but reports soon emerged the young FA had acted strangely when the alarms first sounded.

Passenger Ryan Boughen said Rojas stood in the aisle at least 30 seconds after the alarms sounded, before he took action. "I yelled that I smelled smoke and eventually he did go back there to check it out," Boughen said. "He peeked into the bathroom and I saw this yellowish-greyish smoke pour out the top of the door and then he closed the door right away."

According to a District Court complaint, Rojas stuffed an extra packet of paper towels in the lav's dispenser just before the flight left Minneapolis. Rojas later told authorities he reached into the lav and lit the towels on fire before starting beverage service.

An agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confirmed the fire was "intentionally set inside the napkin/paper towel compartment, with the most likely ignition point being an extra packet of paper towels in the compartment."

If convicted, Rojas could be fined and sentenced to up to 20 years in prison. Needless to say, he's already been fired from Compass.

FMI: www.compassairlines.com