British Airways cabin crew were forced to restrain an intoxicated male passenger aboard a flight from London to Singapore earlier this week after he became violent and attempted to punch fellow travelers.
Staff and some passengers used seatbelts to subdue the man on the long-haul flight.
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“It was about three hours after we took off—this passenger sitting in front of us was getting more and more agitated,” a female passenger told The Sun Online, describing the terrifying situation.
“He was drinking a bottle of spirits he’d somehow managed to bring onto the plane from duty-free. He was getting really upset. The crew was trying to calm him down but it just kept getting worse,” she added. “He was jumping up and trying to punch other passengers and this really tough-looking bloke had to step in.”
“He pinned him down by one of his arms in some kind of arm lock and held him there until the crew could strap him to a seat.”
The flight continued onto its scheduled destination despite the incident and authorities met the plane when it landed in Singapore.
“The crew on board reassured customers, moved nearby passengers to alternative seats and arranged for police to meet the aircraft,” a British Airways spokesperson said in a statement. “This sort of behavior will not be tolerated and the appropriate action will always be taken. Our customers and crews should be able to enjoy their flights and not suffer any form of abuse.”
According to the Independent, the Civil Aviation Authority found there were 418 instances of disruptive behavior by passengers on U.K. flights in 2016, more than double that of 2015. The report has prompted a review of whether U.K. airports should be subject to alcohol licensing laws.
The in-flight disturbance also comes just one week after three men received a airlines/men-who-attacked-flight-attendant-given-ban-facing-criminal-charges.html” target=”_self” rel=”nofollow”>one-year flight ban for assaulting a flight attendant in Vietnam.
