Exeter Police Department Recognizes Jeff Neil for Heroic Act

Exeter, NH - March 24th, 2023: The Exeter Police Department was pleased to present Exeter resident Jeff Neil with a “Citizen Award” this morning in recognition of his heroic actions aboard United Airlines Flight 2609 earlier this month.

At a brief ceremony held at the Town Offices, Police Chief Stephan Poulin honored Neil with a crystal plaque for his courageous decision to step up and help subdue a passenger who was acting erratically, making threats toward passengers and staff, and allegedly attempted to open a cabin exit door and tried to stab a flight attendant.

“This is when another passenger on the plane exemplified what it means to be both a hero and a leader. That person was Jeff Neil of Exeter, who was sitting with his wife and just wanted to get home,” Poulin said as he recounted the highly publicized incident on March 5 that could have ended differently had Neil not taken action to keep everyone safe.

Neil attended the ceremony with his wife, Libby, along with members of the police and fire departments, the Select Board, and other town officials and community members.

“Mr. Neil’s actions that day are a reminder that everyday heroes live among us, here in Exeter and in communities all across the globe. They quietly go about their daily lives, but when a crisis unexpectedly presents itself and they feel compelled to act, they will respond without hesitation,” Chief Poulin said.

As he praised Neil for his display of heroism and leadership that day, Chief Poulin spoke about how he demonstrated several important qualities and skills that are needed to be a public safety leader.

“Ensuring public safety requires the ability to assess potential hazards within the community – in this case a community aboard a plane – and determine how to eliminate or avoid risks. Proper planning and communication are other skills which also happened very fast in this case, but could have also been something that Mr. Neil drew upon from his past training and experiences. And ultimately we have the importance of executing the plan. The first act of Mr. Neil stepping up to the threat showed what we refer to as command presence or command authority. Then by quickly executing the containment of the threat, Mr. Neil led his ‘team’ - the other members on the plane - and remained calm throughout the crisis,” Chief Poulin said.

Neil doesn’t consider himself a hero, but acknowledged the significance of the event. “I truly was in the right place at the right time,” he said.

Saying he had his “moment” and was speechless, Neil expressed his appreciation to the Police Department for the recognition.

“This is my home. I’ve lived here for 15-plus years. This is where I raised my kids. Having the chief of police recognizing me, I can’t tell you how much that means to me. I didn’t expect more than two to three people here, including my wife and myself,” said Neil, a former bouncer who now works for a software company and volunteers as chairman of the board of directors for the Exeter Area YMCA.

As she reflected on his actions, his wife said she wasn’t at all surprised that he jumped into action. “We both knew that he would be getting up,” she recalled.

While she feared he would be injured during the ruckus on the flight, she knew that her husband was determined to take action. “It was scary, but I really commend everyone on the flight. They were calm,” said Libby, who works as a paraprofessional at Main Street School.

Like her husband, Libby was also appreciative of the support following the incident. “We knew we lived in a good community,” she said, “and this just reinforces that.”