Just a little over an hour into an eight-hour Scoot flight from Queensland to Singapore, a brawl erupted in the cabin, forcing the plane to divert to Sydney.
An unruly Australian man had lashed out by punching another passenger on the flight, according to a statement made by the airline on Monday, and the decision was made to divert to flight to Sydney Airport. Flight TR7 had been scheduled to arrive in Singapore at 3:15pm yesterday if not for the violent altercation.
A video shared on Facebook by Rico David Garilli showed two men in the midst of the brawl, which required the assistance of flight attendants and passengers who helped to separate them. After a moment of peace, the unruly passenger slipped off his shirt and dashed down the cabin to start another violent fight.
According to the man who took the video, the man started to drink heavily after it was announced that their flight was delayed.
Scoot noted that the passenger appeared normal during boarding and take-off, but he started disturbing passengers around him once the plane was in the air. The passengers were moved to other seats, and the crew was instructed not to sell alcohol to him. Soon after, he punched a fellow passenger.
The man was eventually subdued with two restraining kits, and it took five passengers to help restrain the man. Brisbane Times reported that the man was met by the Australian Federal Police and paramedics upon arrival at Sydney Airport.
As for the affected passengers, they were placed on alternative flights to Singapore. The Straits Times confirmed that they were placed on a Scoot flight and two Singapore Airlines flights.
Hello Steph. We regret your flight disruption. The flight was diverted to Sydney, as there was a disruptive passenger on board. The passenger was handed to local law enforcement for processing. We have arranged for alternative flights to affected passengers – The Scoot Team.
— Scoot (@flyscootJP) January 21, 2019
One passenger on the flight was particularly aggrieved at the way Scoot employees handled the situation and took to Twitter to complain.
I was on the flight, I know what happened. The way your company has handled everything, including the situation with the mentioned passenger, has been deplorable.
— Steph O’Laughlin (@StephOLaughlin) January 21, 2019
That passenger should not have been allowed to reboard after the delay but because your staff were trying to keep the delay under 3 hours they weren’t doing their jobs properly.
— Steph O’Laughlin (@StephOLaughlin) January 21, 2019
So instead of a 3 hour delay for my regular flight I’ve now been delayed by 10 hours. An inconceivable inconvenience for your staff’s lack of ability to do the job they’re paid to do.
— Steph O’Laughlin (@StephOLaughlin) January 21, 2019
You also failed to mention we were diverted to Sydney after being diverted back to the Gold Coast 2 whole hours after the passenger started being disruptive. Delayed responses are your thing I suppose.
— Steph O’Laughlin (@StephOLaughlin) January 21, 2019
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