Police: Man runs onto Phoenix airport taxiway, slaps jet

Authorities arrested a man in Phoenix after he scaled a fence at the city's main airport and ran out toward a plane that had just landed, according to The Arizona Republic. The incident occurred around 5:30 p.m. local time on Christmas evening.

The Associated Press says workers in the airport control tower alerted authorities after they observed the 49-year-old man — identified as Robert Bump — climb a Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport fence and run out onto the tarmac and toward a taxiway.

Phoenix police spokesman James Holmes tells Republic that a Southwest Airlines plane was waiting to approach a terminal on the taxiway that the man was headed toward. The flight's pilots turned off the aircraft's engine after authorities warned the them about the approaching man, Holmes says.

Bump then allegedly banged on the Southwest jet's engines with his hands and then began walking back toward the terminal, according to information from the police. It was shortly after that point that Bump was arrested and taken into custody.

The Republic writes that "investigators believe Bump showed signs of being impaired by drugs or alcohol."