Air rage
Encyclopedia
Air rage is the general term for disruptive and/or violent behavior perpetrated by passenger
s and crew of aircraft
, typically during flight. The first noted, or recorded air rage event in Britain was May 15, 1990, on a flight from Grand Canaria to Gatwick airport by Miss Theresa Sheffield.
In the first book on the subject "Air Rage: Crisis in the Skies", Air Rage is defined as "aberrant, abnormal, or violent behaviour exhibited during the air travel process".
Unlike ground vehicles, airplanes enter altitudes where changes in air pressure can help trigger temporary psychological changes, such as enhancing the psychoactive effects of chemicals like alcohol
which is typically served on board.
Furthermore, stopping and ejecting the offenders is often not a practical option as landing
is an involved process that would seriously inconvenience the flight schedule of the aircraft and the passengers more than the misbehaving person themselves. In addition, unlike large ships, there is insufficient room on board to hold the offender in an isolated area until arrival.
Examples of behaviour that threatens flight safety include failure to follow safety regulations or behaving in a way that gives suspicion of a threat to flight safety.
An airline passenger's uncontrolled anger is usually expressed in aggressive or violent behaviour in the passenger compartment, but air rage can have serious implications, especially if the offender decides to interfere with the aircraft's navigation or flight controls which could cause it to crash. Air rage comes in two different types: hostile and angry/emotional.
Other related behavior that may interfere with the comfort of cabin crew or passengers include smoking on board the flight, viewing pornographic materials, performing sex acts
("mile high" club) in the aircraft cabin
, making undue sexual advances towards other people, performing sex acts in the lavatory, the inappropriate groping
and touching of crew members, loud or drunken behaviors, spitting, swearing, and wearing clothing that is inappropriate or offensive.
pilot was sacked for shouting at an intoxicated female passenger who claimed there was a bomb on board a flight from London to Barbados
.
At Newark International Airport in Newark, New Jersey
, John C. Davis of Fredericksburg, Virginia
attacked and seriously injured a Continental Airlines
Gate/Ticket agent Angelo Sottile while awaiting to board a flight headed to Orlando, Florida
for a vacation at Walt Disney World. The flight was delayed for some two hours due to bad weather, in addition, Mr. Davis' daughter ran down the jetway. When he and his wife attempted to go after the child, Mr. Sottile allegedly shoved them back and sent another agent to go retrieve the child. Eventually, Mr. Davis was acquitted of charges but has been banned for life from flying on Continental Airlines. In addition, he was sued by Mr. Sottile and Continental in civil court even though Mr. Davis attempted to sue Continental over the incident himself.
in Paris
after he claimed he had a bomb on board his flight to London
during a fit of pique over being assigned a different seat instead of the one he had booked.
to Heathrow Airport, British actress Tracy Shaw
, apparently intoxicated, hit her husband, Mr Ashworth, across the face eight times in the Business Class
cabin, just after the Boeing 767
touched down in the Bahamas to refuel before continuing to the UK.
Witnesses reported that she then stood in the aisle screaming and swearing at him until he managed to calm her down by grabbing hold of her wrist and yanking her back into her seat. She then moved to another seat nearby and began to sob.
A witness said "Everyone recognized them immediately and the crew were giving them plenty of attention," and "When they boarded the flight they were in high spirits."
Tracy Shaw said the incident happened because they had both felt unwell since they had chosen to quit smoking and that they went on to deny they were drunk or there ever was a fight, claiming they were "just really tired" instead.
to Manchester
were held in their seats by security staff until their plane landed in Frankfurt
in Germany
. They were then arrested by German police and held for two hours after being accused of smoking in the bathroom and threatening to open the cabin door to get "some fresh air" into the aircraft. They had also threatened and swore at staff that refused to sell them any more alcoholic drinks at the bar. One of them also tried to hit a flight attendant with a vodka
bottle.
On 17 February 3 middle-aged South Africans (Winifred Moyles, her sister Arma and husband Derrick) were on a charter flight from Cape Town
, South Africa
to Abuja
in Nigeria
. Derrick, who was drunk, punched one of flight attendants after she refused to take up his sexual advances at her. He then joked that he wanted the aircraft to be diverted to Nairobi
in Kenya
so as to allow him to "buy a new suit" for his birthday party.
Australia
On 17 February, Brian McFadden
was questioned by police at Sydney airport after reportedly 'running amok' on Virgin Airways flight VA2 over the Pacific Ocean
a day earlier. On the flight from Los Angeles
to Australia, the Irish
singer, 30, was said to have been a former boy band star, was drinking heavily, shouting, being abusive to flight attendants and fellow passengers and allegedly even lit up a cigarette during the flight. He was the restrained by Australian TV talent show host Kyle Sandilands
, who was traveling with him in the business class section.
He then dismissed the incident as a 'storm in a teacup' and said he was joking about lighting up his cigarette
on board while his girlfriend at the time Delta Goodrem
also denied he had smoked on the plane. The pilot radioed ahead for a police presence at Sydney airport. In addition, the cabin crew reported McFadden's behavior to ground staff in Sydney Airport
and Federal Police detained him for questioning. The two men were interviewed by officers but Virgin Airways made no formal complaint. They were released without charge.
Melbourne
's 3AW radio station reiterated McFadden had been drinking and smoking before storming into the economy class
section. Once out of business class he pointlessly scolded the economy class passengers before being led back to his seat by Kyle Sandilands.
Jamaica
On 4 May, two British nationals who brawled on a Virgin Atlantic flight from the UK to Jamaica
, allegedly resulted in £25,000 worth of damage to interior of the aircraft. They stood trial in the Jamaican Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court, a day after they were arrested and charged with malicious destruction of property and air rage disorderly conduct, among others.
The two intoxicated Londoners, Jason Dixon and Danielle Bishop, who were denied landing privileges as a result of the incident, appeared before Senior Magistrate Judith Pusey. Ms. Bishop alleged that the fight started when Mr Dixon attacked in a drunken fit of pique after she shunned his unwanted sexual advances.
She claimed that her fellow traveler had been drinking heavily during the flight and at some point started to ask her rude questions and making derogatory comments to describe what he wanted to do to her, which she did not like. She also alleged he had ripped her clothes and yanked out strands of her hair. The two never knew each other before they had met on the fight.
After the fight was broken up, it was realized that several seats in the cabin had been damaged. The two were arrested and charged at the Norman Manley International Airport
in Kingston, Jamaica.
Ms. Bishop pleaded guilty to the charges, but after hearing her explanation, the plea was rejected and the matter set for trial. Mr. Dixon, however, said, without a lawyer's aid, that he was not guilty and was using his legal right to defend himself against Ms. Bishop.
USA
On June 1, F-16 fighter jets escorted Ghana
-bound United Airlines
Flight 990 back to Dulles Airport after a fight broke out between two passengers over the usage of the aircraft’s reclining seating facility.
As the 144 passengers on the United Airlines
jet bound for Ghana settled down for the overnight flight from the USA, tempers flared as one man reclined his seat into the other person’s lap, not long after they had taken off at 10:44pm according to witnesses.
The plane was then escorted by a pair of F-16 fighter jets and was forced to circle Dulles for 25 minutes to burn off $50,000 worth of excess fuel and decrease its weight for safety reasons.
Local Police met the flight at the gate but charges were not pressed, said the Washington Airports Authority, but unruly passengers were thought to have cost the airline a significant amount of money due to the losses of fuel and the delay incurred to the flight.
Barbados
On June 9, Zoe King and her husband Martin, both in their 40’s, and her 76 year old farther Derek Edmond, were arrested after a fight that took the cabin crew over 30 minutes to break up on Virgin Atlantic flight VS29 from Gatwick Airport to Barbados
. Mrs. King, who was celebrating her birthday, was drinking along with her family for much of the six hours that had elapsed up to this point during the eight hour flight. The Kings and Mr. Edmond, ordered by the police
to appear in court, were charged with disruptive behavior on an aircraft.
A Danish family first complained to flight attendants and then to the raucous group of 10 passengers about the noise. After the complaint was made, both Mr. and Mrs. King threw hot coffee
at and then swapped punches with another family sitting in front of them as the flight crew tried to pull them apart.
In addition, a few children were running in the aircraft aisle and one had gotten airsick. As the child’s father tried to comfort the boy, he accidentally bumped into a couple of the drunken men in the drinking party at the back of the Boeing 747-400
. One man put the boy's father in a headlock while his friend started punching the man in the face. Eventually, the man was able to resist the attack and fought back, according to the 34 year old Market Harborough
Energy consultant, James Longley. Eventually the man knocked the assailant out and cursed at him. A female passenger in the group then shouted "You swore in front of my child" about six times and "It's my birthday" once. There was five minutes of shouting while people gathered around, according to 70 year old fellow passenger, Elsa Brandford. Other eye witnesses recalled how the fight took place among a group of passengers who had been drinking heavily and that most of the people were standing on their seats while throwing punches and jumping on each other.
Another man in the group then became agitated and made a racist comment to an Afro-Caribbean passenger, who they later found out was an off duty Saint Lucia
n policeman. Mr. King restrained both of them and made him withdraw the remark that he had just made to the Saint Lucian national.
It took flight attendants 30 minutes to quell the fighting and almost an hour to get everyone seated near the back of the plane. The pilot then banned everyone from leaving their seats and radioed ahead asking police to meet the aircraft, the report said. The Kings and Mr. Edmond were arrested when it landed at Grantley Adams Airport. More than a dozen officers met the plane and ten people, including crew members, were taken for questioning. Mrs. King left the plane with her arm in a sling, while her husband had a black eye
.
Inspector David Welch, of the Royal Barbados Police Force
, commented, "There appeared to be a birthday celebration that got too noisy. A Danish national on the flight complained and the fracas started from there."
By June 11, the Kings, from Coulsdon
, Surrey
and Mr. Edmond, from Woodhall Spa
, Lincolnshire
, all pleaded guilty in a local court
to one count each of causing a disruption on an aircraft. A judge in Barbados fined the three £2,300 ($3,700) each, court officials said. All three individuals are permanently banned from flying Virgin Atlantic. A Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said "The safety and welfare of our crew and passengers is Virgin Atlantic's top priority and at no point was the safety or security of the aircraft compromised."
Passenger
A passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....
s and crew of aircraft
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
, typically during flight. The first noted, or recorded air rage event in Britain was May 15, 1990, on a flight from Grand Canaria to Gatwick airport by Miss Theresa Sheffield.
In the first book on the subject "Air Rage: Crisis in the Skies", Air Rage is defined as "aberrant, abnormal, or violent behaviour exhibited during the air travel process".
Overview
Air rage generally covers both behaviour of a passenger, that is likely caused by physiological and/or psychological stresses associated with air travel or when a passenger becomes unruly, angry and/or violent on an aircraft during a flight. The excessive consumption of alcohol by the passengers is often blamed by cabin crew and flight attendants.Unlike ground vehicles, airplanes enter altitudes where changes in air pressure can help trigger temporary psychological changes, such as enhancing the psychoactive effects of chemicals like alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
which is typically served on board.
Furthermore, stopping and ejecting the offenders is often not a practical option as landing
Landing
thumb|A [[Mute Swan]] alighting. Note the ruffled feathers on top of the wings indicate that the swan is flying at the [[Stall |stall]]ing speed...
is an involved process that would seriously inconvenience the flight schedule of the aircraft and the passengers more than the misbehaving person themselves. In addition, unlike large ships, there is insufficient room on board to hold the offender in an isolated area until arrival.
Examples of behaviour that threatens flight safety include failure to follow safety regulations or behaving in a way that gives suspicion of a threat to flight safety.
An airline passenger's uncontrolled anger is usually expressed in aggressive or violent behaviour in the passenger compartment, but air rage can have serious implications, especially if the offender decides to interfere with the aircraft's navigation or flight controls which could cause it to crash. Air rage comes in two different types: hostile and angry/emotional.
Undesirable passenger behavior
Air rage generally covers both behavior of a passenger or passengers on the aircraft or more generally speaking at the airport:- Undue anger.
- Gratuitous violence.
- Unruliness.
- Obnoxiousness
- Threatening flight safety.
- Failure to follow safety regulations.
- Behaving in a way that gives suspicion of a threat to flight safety.
- Claiming to have a bombBombA bomb is any of a range of explosive weapons that only rely on the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy...
on the flight or falsely saying they are a terrorist with malignant intent. - Temper tantrumTantrumA tantrum is an emotional outburst, usually associated with children or those in emotional distress, that is typically characterized by stubbornness, crying, screaming, yelling, shrieking, defiance, angry ranting, a resistance to attempts at pacification and, in some cases, violence...
s. - Disruptive behaviour.
- Threatening crew members and other passengers.
Other related behavior that may interfere with the comfort of cabin crew or passengers include smoking on board the flight, viewing pornographic materials, performing sex acts
Mile High Club
The Mile High Club is a slang term applied collectively to individuals who have sex while on board an aircraft in flight. There is no known formally constituted club so named...
("mile high" club) in the aircraft cabin
Aircraft cabin
An aircraft cabin is the section of an aircraft in which passengers travel. At cruising altitudes of modern commercial aircraft the surrounding atmosphere is too thin to breathe without an oxygen mask, so cabins are pressurized at a higher pressure than ambient pressure at altitude.In commercial...
, making undue sexual advances towards other people, performing sex acts in the lavatory, the inappropriate groping
Groping
When used in a sexual context, groping is touching or fondling another person in a sexual way using the hands; it generally has a negative connotation, and is considered molestation in most societies. The term 'frotteurism' may be applied when a person rubs up against another person, typically...
and touching of crew members, loud or drunken behaviors, spitting, swearing, and wearing clothing that is inappropriate or offensive.
1999
A British AirwaysBritish Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
pilot was sacked for shouting at an intoxicated female passenger who claimed there was a bomb on board a flight from London to Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
.
At Newark International Airport in Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
, John C. Davis of Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia located south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 24,286...
attacked and seriously injured a Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc...
Gate/Ticket agent Angelo Sottile while awaiting to board a flight headed to Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
for a vacation at Walt Disney World. The flight was delayed for some two hours due to bad weather, in addition, Mr. Davis' daughter ran down the jetway. When he and his wife attempted to go after the child, Mr. Sottile allegedly shoved them back and sent another agent to go retrieve the child. Eventually, Mr. Davis was acquitted of charges but has been banned for life from flying on Continental Airlines. In addition, he was sued by Mr. Sottile and Continental in civil court even though Mr. Davis attempted to sue Continental over the incident himself.
2001
A Frenchman was arrested and fined at Orly AirportOrly Airport
Paris-Orly Airport is an airport located partially in Orly and partially in Villeneuve-le-Roi, south of Paris, France. It has flights to cities in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Caribbean, North America and Southeast Asia. Prior to the construction of Charles de Gaulle Airport, Orly was...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
after he claimed he had a bomb on board his flight to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
during a fit of pique over being assigned a different seat instead of the one he had booked.
2002
During a flight from the Cayman IslandsCayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
to Heathrow Airport, British actress Tracy Shaw
Tracy Shaw
Tracy Shaw is a British actress and singer.She is best known for her role as hairdresser Maxine Peacock in British soap opera Coronation Street during the 1990s and early 2000s.-Career:...
, apparently intoxicated, hit her husband, Mr Ashworth, across the face eight times in the Business Class
Business class
Business class is a travel class available on many commercial airlines and rail lines, known by brand names which vary by airline or rail company. In the airline industry, it was originally intended as an intermediate level of service between economy class and first class, but many airlines now...
cabin, just after the Boeing 767
Boeing 767
The Boeing 767 is a mid-size, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It was the manufacturer's first wide-body twinjet and its first airliner with a two-crew glass cockpit. The aircraft features two turbofan engines, a supercritical wing, and a conventional tail...
touched down in the Bahamas to refuel before continuing to the UK.
Witnesses reported that she then stood in the aisle screaming and swearing at him until he managed to calm her down by grabbing hold of her wrist and yanking her back into her seat. She then moved to another seat nearby and began to sob.
A witness said "Everyone recognized them immediately and the crew were giving them plenty of attention," and "When they boarded the flight they were in high spirits."
Tracy Shaw said the incident happened because they had both felt unwell since they had chosen to quit smoking and that they went on to deny they were drunk or there ever was a fight, claiming they were "just really tired" instead.
2008
Two women who had been drinking heavily aboard an XL Airways flight from the island of KosKos
Kos or Cos is a Greek island in the south Sporades group of the Dodecanese, next to the Gulf of Gökova/Cos. It measures by , and is from the coast of Bodrum, Turkey and the ancient region of Caria. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Kos peripheral unit, which is...
to Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
were held in their seats by security staff until their plane landed in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. They were then arrested by German police and held for two hours after being accused of smoking in the bathroom and threatening to open the cabin door to get "some fresh air" into the aircraft. They had also threatened and swore at staff that refused to sell them any more alcoholic drinks at the bar. One of them also tried to hit a flight attendant with a vodka
Vodka
Vodka , is a distilled beverage. It is composed primarily of water and ethanol with traces of impurities and flavorings. Vodka is made by the distillation of fermented substances such as grains, potatoes, or sometimes fruits....
bottle.
2011
AngolaOn 17 February 3 middle-aged South Africans (Winifred Moyles, her sister Arma and husband Derrick) were on a charter flight from Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
to Abuja
Abuja
Abuja is the capital city of Nigeria. It is located in the centre of Nigeria, within the Federal Capital Territory . Abuja is a planned city, and was built mainly in the 1980s. It officially became Nigeria's capital on 12 December 1991, replacing Lagos...
in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. Derrick, who was drunk, punched one of flight attendants after she refused to take up his sexual advances at her. He then joked that he wanted the aircraft to be diverted to Nairobi
Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
in Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
so as to allow him to "buy a new suit" for his birthday party.
Australia
On 17 February, Brian McFadden
Brian McFadden
Brian Nicholas McFadden , is an Irish singer-songwriter who rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of the Irish boyband Westlife...
was questioned by police at Sydney airport after reportedly 'running amok' on Virgin Airways flight VA2 over the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
a day earlier. On the flight from Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
to Australia, the Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
singer, 30, was said to have been a former boy band star, was drinking heavily, shouting, being abusive to flight attendants and fellow passengers and allegedly even lit up a cigarette during the flight. He was the restrained by Australian TV talent show host Kyle Sandilands
Kyle Sandilands
Kyle Dalton Sandilands is an Australian radio and TV personality. He is currently the host with Jacqueline Henderson, better known as Jackie O, on the weekday morning radio program The Kyle and Jackie O Show on Sydney radio station 2Day FM, The Kyle and Jackie O Hour of Power which airs on...
, who was traveling with him in the business class section.
He then dismissed the incident as a 'storm in a teacup' and said he was joking about lighting up his cigarette
Cigarette
A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
on board while his girlfriend at the time Delta Goodrem
Delta Goodrem
Delta Lea Goodrem is an Australian singer-songwriter, pianist, and actress. Signed to Sony at the age of 15, Goodrem rose to prominence in 2002, starring in the Australian soap opera Neighbours as Nina Tucker. Goodrem has achieved eight number-one singles and three number-one albums in her home...
also denied he had smoked on the plane. The pilot radioed ahead for a police presence at Sydney airport. In addition, the cabin crew reported McFadden's behavior to ground staff in Sydney Airport
Sydney Airport
Sydney Airport may refer to:* Sydney Airport, also known as Kingsford Smith International Airport, in Sydney, Australia* Sydney/J.A. Douglas McCurdy Airport, in Nova Scotia, Canada...
and Federal Police detained him for questioning. The two men were interviewed by officers but Virgin Airways made no formal complaint. They were released without charge.
Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
's 3AW radio station reiterated McFadden had been drinking and smoking before storming into the economy class
Economy class
__FORCETOC__Economy class, also called coach class , steerage, or standard class, is the lowest class of seating in air travel, rail travel, and sometimes ferry or maritime travel....
section. Once out of business class he pointlessly scolded the economy class passengers before being led back to his seat by Kyle Sandilands.
Jamaica
On 4 May, two British nationals who brawled on a Virgin Atlantic flight from the UK to Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, allegedly resulted in £25,000 worth of damage to interior of the aircraft. They stood trial in the Jamaican Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court, a day after they were arrested and charged with malicious destruction of property and air rage disorderly conduct, among others.
The two intoxicated Londoners, Jason Dixon and Danielle Bishop, who were denied landing privileges as a result of the incident, appeared before Senior Magistrate Judith Pusey. Ms. Bishop alleged that the fight started when Mr Dixon attacked in a drunken fit of pique after she shunned his unwanted sexual advances.
She claimed that her fellow traveler had been drinking heavily during the flight and at some point started to ask her rude questions and making derogatory comments to describe what he wanted to do to her, which she did not like. She also alleged he had ripped her clothes and yanked out strands of her hair. The two never knew each other before they had met on the fight.
After the fight was broken up, it was realized that several seats in the cabin had been damaged. The two were arrested and charged at the Norman Manley International Airport
Norman Manley International Airport
-Cargo :The following Cargo/Courier serve Norman Manley International Airport:-Accidents and incidents:*On 17 July 1960, the captain of a Vickers Viscount of Cubana de Aviación hijacked the aircraft on a flight from José Martí International Airport, Havana to Miami International Airport, Florida...
in Kingston, Jamaica.
Ms. Bishop pleaded guilty to the charges, but after hearing her explanation, the plea was rejected and the matter set for trial. Mr. Dixon, however, said, without a lawyer's aid, that he was not guilty and was using his legal right to defend himself against Ms. Bishop.
USA
On June 1, F-16 fighter jets escorted Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
-bound United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
Flight 990 back to Dulles Airport after a fight broke out between two passengers over the usage of the aircraft’s reclining seating facility.
As the 144 passengers on the United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
jet bound for Ghana settled down for the overnight flight from the USA, tempers flared as one man reclined his seat into the other person’s lap, not long after they had taken off at 10:44pm according to witnesses.
The plane was then escorted by a pair of F-16 fighter jets and was forced to circle Dulles for 25 minutes to burn off $50,000 worth of excess fuel and decrease its weight for safety reasons.
Local Police met the flight at the gate but charges were not pressed, said the Washington Airports Authority, but unruly passengers were thought to have cost the airline a significant amount of money due to the losses of fuel and the delay incurred to the flight.
Barbados
On June 9, Zoe King and her husband Martin, both in their 40’s, and her 76 year old farther Derek Edmond, were arrested after a fight that took the cabin crew over 30 minutes to break up on Virgin Atlantic flight VS29 from Gatwick Airport to Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
. Mrs. King, who was celebrating her birthday, was drinking along with her family for much of the six hours that had elapsed up to this point during the eight hour flight. The Kings and Mr. Edmond, ordered by the police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
to appear in court, were charged with disruptive behavior on an aircraft.
A Danish family first complained to flight attendants and then to the raucous group of 10 passengers about the noise. After the complaint was made, both Mr. and Mrs. King threw hot coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
at and then swapped punches with another family sitting in front of them as the flight crew tried to pull them apart.
In addition, a few children were running in the aircraft aisle and one had gotten airsick. As the child’s father tried to comfort the boy, he accidentally bumped into a couple of the drunken men in the drinking party at the back of the Boeing 747-400
Boeing 747-400
The Boeing 747-400 is a major development and the best-selling model of the Boeing 747 family of jet airliners. While retaining the four-engine wide-body layout of its predecessors, the 747-400 embodies numerous technological and structural changes to produce a more efficient airframe...
. One man put the boy's father in a headlock while his friend started punching the man in the face. Eventually, the man was able to resist the attack and fought back, according to the 34 year old Market Harborough
Market Harborough
Market Harborough is a market town within the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England.It has a population of 20,785 and is the administrative headquarters of Harborough District Council. It sits on the Northamptonshire-Leicestershire border...
Energy consultant, James Longley. Eventually the man knocked the assailant out and cursed at him. A female passenger in the group then shouted "You swore in front of my child" about six times and "It's my birthday" once. There was five minutes of shouting while people gathered around, according to 70 year old fellow passenger, Elsa Brandford. Other eye witnesses recalled how the fight took place among a group of passengers who had been drinking heavily and that most of the people were standing on their seats while throwing punches and jumping on each other.
Another man in the group then became agitated and made a racist comment to an Afro-Caribbean passenger, who they later found out was an off duty Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia is an island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 620 km2 and has an...
n policeman. Mr. King restrained both of them and made him withdraw the remark that he had just made to the Saint Lucian national.
It took flight attendants 30 minutes to quell the fighting and almost an hour to get everyone seated near the back of the plane. The pilot then banned everyone from leaving their seats and radioed ahead asking police to meet the aircraft, the report said. The Kings and Mr. Edmond were arrested when it landed at Grantley Adams Airport. More than a dozen officers met the plane and ten people, including crew members, were taken for questioning. Mrs. King left the plane with her arm in a sling, while her husband had a black eye
Black eye
A black eye , or or 'shiner', is bruising around the eye commonly due to an injury to the face rather than eye injury. The name is given due to the color of bruising. The so-called black eye is caused by bleeding beneath the skin and around the eye...
.
Inspector David Welch, of the Royal Barbados Police Force
Royal Barbados Police Force
The Royal Barbados Police Force , as outlined by the Constitution of Barbados is a part of the government responsible for local law enforcement. The Commissioner of the Police force is Darwin Dottin, who also served as the last president of the Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police...
, commented, "There appeared to be a birthday celebration that got too noisy. A Danish national on the flight complained and the fracas started from there."
By June 11, the Kings, from Coulsdon
Coulsdon
Coulsdon is a town on the southernmost boundary of the London Borough of Croydon. It is surrounded by the Metropolitan Green Belt of the Farthing Down, Coulsdon Common and Kenley Common...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
and Mr. Edmond, from Woodhall Spa
Woodhall Spa
Woodhall Spa is a civil parish and village in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England within a wooded area on the Southern edge of the Lincolnshire Wolds, about south-west of Horncastle and about east-south-east of Lincoln...
, Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, all pleaded guilty in a local court
Court
A court is a form of tribunal, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance with the rule of law...
to one count each of causing a disruption on an aircraft. A judge in Barbados fined the three £2,300 ($3,700) each, court officials said. All three individuals are permanently banned from flying Virgin Atlantic. A Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said "The safety and welfare of our crew and passengers is Virgin Atlantic's top priority and at no point was the safety or security of the aircraft compromised."
See also
- Rage (emotion)Rage (emotion)Rage is a feeling of intense anger. It is associated with the Fight-or-flight response and oftentimes activated in response to an external cue, such as the murder of a loved one. The phrase, 'thrown into a fit of rage,' expresses the immediate nature of rage that occurs before deliberation. If left...
- Computer rageComputer rageComputer rage is a heightened physiological response with associated feelings of anger and frustration resulting from using a computer or other complex electronic device....
- Road rageRoad rageRoad rage is an aggressive or angry behavior by a driver of an automobile or other motor vehicle. Such behavior might include rude gestures, verbal insults, deliberately driving in an unsafe or threatening manner, or making threats. Road rage can lead to altercations, assaults, and collisions...
- Steven Slater
- Trolley rage
- Wrap rageWrap rageWrap rage, also called package rage, is the common name for heightened levels of anger and frustration resulting from the inability to open hard-to-remove packaging, particularly some heat sealed plastic blister packs and clamshells...
- Bike rageBike rageBike rage refers to acts of verbal or gestural anger or physical aggression between cyclists and other users of bike paths or roadways, including pedestrians, other cyclists, motorcyclists, or drivers. Bike rage can consist of shouting at other road users, making obscene gestures or threats,...
- Mouse rageMouse rageMouse rage is a particular type of computer rage. It is a behavioural response provoked by failure or unexpected results observed when using a computer...
- Roid rage
External links
- Airrage.org & AviationInsecurity.com
- Flight Attendants Fight 'Air Rage'
- 'Reverse Air-Rage' on Russian Jet
- Flying in the age of air rage
- Air rage and 9-11
- BA jet plunges in cockpit struggle
- Trans-Atlantic "air rage" incident ends safely