A Nigerian man linked to Al-Qaeda tried to set off an explosive device aboard a U.S. passenger plane as it approached Detroit on Christmas Day.

Passengers say the 23-year-old man was trying to ignite some kind of explosive device as the airliner approached Detroit. The flight from Amsterdam landed safely after the man was overpowered by passengers and crew. Witnesses said he burnt his leg but no-one else was hurt among the 278 passengers and 11 crew on board. Officials have described the device as a mixture of powder and liquid which failed to go off properly.  Northwest Airlines Flight 253 had begun its descent towards Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Friday afternoon when the incident occurred. The Airbus 330, which had originated in Amsterdam, was about 20 minutes from landing when passengers noticed something was wrong.

The suspect flew into Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam on a KLM flight from Lagos, Nigeria, and is not believed to be on any “no fly” list, although his name does appear in a U.S. database of people with suspect connections. He did not undergo secondary security screening in Amsterdam, an administration official said.

Northwest is a subsidiary of Delta Airlines.