Australian man disrupts flight by running naked in aisle, knocking down crew member

Australian police arrested a man early Tuesday (May 28) after he disrupted a Perth to Melbourne flight by running naked down the aisle and knocking a flight attendant. The 3 hour 30 minute Virgin Australia flightwas forcedto return to Perth after an hour into the journey, reported FlightAware, a flight-tracking website.Anairlinestatementsaid the flight returned due toa "disruptive passenger."

Police said,"Officers arrested a man after he allegedly ran naked through the aircraft mid-flight and knocked a crew member to the floor."

"The man was transferred to hospital for assessment, where he remains,"a police statement said. The man hasbeen detainedandhewillbe presentedin a court on June 14.

Local media reports said nobodywas injuredin the rare disruptionbuttheairline later issued an apology to"guests impacted,"adding the safety of passengers and crew was its top priority.

It was not clear when and how the man stripped his clothes off. Policedidn’treveal what charges they were imposing on the man.

Previous such incidents

In 2018, an Alaska Airlines flight had to return to Anchorage from Seattle due to a passenger who reportedly locked himself in the lavatory, undressed and disobeyed crew orders.

During the pandemic, there was an increase in bad behaviour on planes, and tensions between customers and flight attendants over Covid protocols, like mask-wearing, were running high.

The FAA declaredin2022 that it will implement a zero-tolerance policy against disruptive passengersgoing forward.

(With inputs from agencies)