Passenger prays, jet makes emergency landing

A United Airlines plane, escorted by fighter jets, made an emergency landing Thursday night after a passenger refused to follow flight attendant instructions.

Flight 662, a 757 aircraft, was in route from Denver and scheduled to land at Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C., at 9:10 p.m.

"The flight declared an emergency because a passenger would not follow flight attendant instructions for landing," Megan McCarthy, a United spokeswoman, told CNN in a statement, referring all other questions to law enforcement.

CNN affiliate WUSA reported that the passenger who ignored the instructions was a man praying in the aisle of the jet.

"Out of an abundance of caution we scrambled two F-16s," Lt. Cmdr. Bill Lewis of the North American Aerospace Defense Command said.

The aircraft landed uneventfully at Dulles, according to Rob Yingling, a Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority spokesman.

Police responded, but no arrest was made and no charges were filed, he said. The passenger was taken to a local hospital.